Skip to main content

Full text of "King Lear"

See other formats 


This is a digital copy of a book that was preserved for generations on library shelves before it was carefully scanned by Google as part of a project 
to make the world's books discoverable online. 

It has survived long enough for the copyright to expire and the book to enter the public domain. A public domain book is one that was never subject 
to copyright or whose legal copyright term has expired. Whether a book is in the public domain may vary country to country. Public domain books 
are our gateways to the past, representing a wealth of history, culture and knowledge that's often difficult to discover. 

Marks, notations and other marginalia present in the original volume will appear in this file - a reminder of this book's long journey from the 
publisher to a library and finally to you. 

Usage guidelines 

Google is proud to partner with libraries to digitize public domain materials and make them widely accessible. Public domain books belong to the 
public and we are merely their custodians. Nevertheless, this work is expensive, so in order to keep providing this resource, we have taken steps to 
prevent abuse by commercial parties, including placing technical restrictions on automated querying. 

We also ask that you: 

+ Make non-commercial use of the files We designed Google Book Search for use by individuals, and we request that you use these files for 
personal, non-commercial purposes. 

+ Refrain from automated querying Do not send automated queries of any sort to Google's system: If you are conducting research on machine 
translation, optical character recognition or other areas where access to a large amount of text is helpful, please contact us. We encourage the 
use of public domain materials for these purposes and may be able to help. 

+ Maintain attribution The Google "watermark" you see on each file is essential for informing people about this project and helping them find 
additional materials through Google Book Search. Please do not remove it. 

+ Keep it legal Whatever your use, remember that you are responsible for ensuring that what you are doing is legal. Do not assume that just 
because we believe a book is in the public domain for users in the United States, that the work is also in the public domain for users in other 
countries. Whether a book is still in copyright varies from country to country, and we can't offer guidance on whether any specific use of 
any specific book is allowed. Please do not assume that a book's appearance in Google Book Search means it can be used in any manner 
anywhere in the world. Copyright infringement liability can be quite severe. 

About Google Book Search 

Google's mission is to organize the world's information and to make it universally accessible and useful. Google Book Search helps readers 
discover the world's books while helping authors and publishers reach new audiences. You can search through the full text of this book on the web 



at |http : //books . google . com/ 



nan. thanhfes 



HN bGflK 4 



■ 



KING LEAR 




TH E. A IL-D E, N 
SHAKE, SPEAR.E, 



O C HE-ATH O C 



Z1 



Ki C^o^ 



1 ff 



THE ARDEN SHAKESPEARE 



HAMLET. 

Edited by Edrnnnd K. Chamben, B. A., Oxford. 
MACBETH. 

Edited by Edmund K. Chambers, B. A., Oxford. 
JULIUS CiESAR. 

Edited by Arthur D. Imies, M. A^ Oxford. 
THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. 

Edited by H. L. Withers, B. A., Oxford. 
TWELFTH NIGHT. 

Edited by Arthur D. Innes, M. A., Oxford. 
AS YOU LIKE IT. 

Edited by J. C. Smith, M. A., Edinburgh. 
A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM. 

Edited by Edmund K. Chambers, B. A., Oxford. 
CYMBELINE. 

Edited by A. T. Wyatt, M. A., Cambridge. 
THE TEMPEST. 

Edited by F. S. Boas, M. A., Oxford. 
KING JOHN. 

Edited by G. C. Moore Smith, M. A» Cambridge. 
RICHARD IL 

Edited by C. H. Herford, L. H. D., Cambridge. 
RICHARD IIL 

Edited by George Macdonald, M. A., Oxford. 
HENRY IV — FIRST PART. 

Edited by F. W. Moorman, B. A., Yorkshire Collegtw 
HENRY V. 

Edited by G. C Moore Smith, M. A., Cambridge. 
HENRY VIIL 

Edited 1^ D. Nichol Smith, M. A., Edinburgh. 
CORIOLANUS. 

Edited by Edmund K. Chambers, B. A., Oxford. 
MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING. 

Edited by J. C. Smith, M. A., Edinburgh. 
KING LEAR. 

Edited by D. Nichol Smith, M. A., Edinburgh. 

The remaining volumes will also be edited. 



Price, 25 cents ^ volume 



licatb'B jEttdlfBb <tbi0dic0 



KING LEAR 



EDITBD BY 

D. NICHOL SMITH, M.A. 

bxhtor of ** kino hxmky thb bighth ** 



BOSTON, U.S.A. 

D. C. HEATH & CO^ PUBLISHERS 

1908 



\^C 66Di^ 



/^harvardN 
university 

V^LIBRAR y 



CONTENTS 

Introduction— - p^^ 

1. History of the Play vii 

2. The Date of the Play xi 

3. The Sources of the Incidents xiii 

4. Critical Appreciation xiz 

King Lear i 

Notes . ^ 

Appendix A— The Sources of the Plot . . 144 
Appendix B— Note on the Metre of King Lear - 153 

Glossary • - - 161 

Index of Words • • - 169 

General Index • • • 172 



INTRODUCTION 



I. HISTORY OF THE PLAY 

King Lear was first printed, in quarto form, in i6o8i 
Two editions of it appeared in that year. Their relation- 
ship and order of publication were for long TheOuartot. 
doubtful, but it is now certain that the earlier 
is that which bears the following title-page; — 

M. William Shak-speare: | His | True Chronicle His- 
torie of the life and | death of King L^ear and his three | 
Daughters. | With the vnfortunate life of Edgar, sanne ) 
and heire to the Earle of Gloster, and his | sullen and 
assumed humor of I Tom of Bedlam: | As it wets played 
before the Kings Maiestie at Whitehall vpon \ S. Stephans 
night in Christmas Hollidayes, \ By his Maiesties seruants 
playing V9ually at the Gloabe | on the Bancke-side. | 
London, | Printed for Nathaniel Butter^ and are to be 
sold 2X his shop in Pauls \ Church-yard at the signe of 
the Plde Bull neere | S*- Austins Gate. 1608. 

Of this edition six copies are known to be extant But 
these qopies are not uniform. All, besides being carelessly 
printed, are composed indiscriminately of corrected and 
uncorrected sheets, with the result that only two of the 
six copies are identical, and that not one of them contains 
•a fully revised text The second quarto edition has the 
same title, but it omits all mention of the place of sale, 
having merely " Printed for Nathaniel Butter. | i6o8 ", a 
circumstance which gives the other the distinctive title of 
the ** Pide Bull edition ". Careful investigation has de- 
finitely established that the second QuartQ was bM^ op 

yii 



viii KING LEAR 

the first It reproduces and aggravates many of the &ults 
of the other, and is of decidedly inferior value. ^ 

The next text of King Lear is that of the Folio of 1623. 
It is the most valuable, for while the Quartos were printed 
in all probability surreptitiously, it appears to have been 
taken from an acting copy preserved at the 
theatre. The independent origin of the two 
texts gives rise to marked divergences. Apart from 
verbal variations, there is considerable difference in the 
length of the two versions. The Quartos contain about 
three hundred lines which are not given in the Folio, and 
on the other hand about a hundred and ten lines in the 
Folio are omitted in the Quartos.* These omissions can- 
not be definitely explained ; but it is probable that neither 
text was revised by Shakespeare himself, and that the 
divergences are due to the actors and printers. The 
Quartos may follow a slightly condensed copy used in the 
performance at Court in i6o6, while the Folio gives the 
more abridged acting copy of the theatre. The biblio- 
graphical difficulties are ftirther complicated by the fact 
that, though the two editions are based on different texts, 
the Folio reproduces some of the errors of the Quartos. 
The explanation of this would seem to be that the printer 
of the Folio did not work directly on the acting copy, but 
employed an edition of the first Quarto which had been 
corrected roughly in accordance with the manuscript. 
The modem text is considerably longer than that of the 

1 The relationship of the Quartos was first esUbUshed by the Cambridge 
editors, though the editor of King Lear . . . collated with the old and nunUm 
editions, published in 1770, had ahready concluded that the Pide Bull edition was 
the first See also Mr. P. A. Daniel's introduction to the facsimile reprints of 
the two Quartos (1885). Another Quarto, a careless reprint of the seomd, was 
"printed by Jane Bell" in 1655. 

s The chief passages omittal in the Quartos are:— L x. 33-38; i. 3. xoz-xo6, 
*5o-i5S; »• 4* 3i4-3as; ii« 4« 4S-5a» 136-141; iiL x. 22-39; "»• «• 74"88; nl 6L 
X2-X4; iv. X. 6-9; iv. 6. 146-X5X. The diief passages omitted in the Folios are:— 
i a. X30-X37; i. 3. x6-3o; L 4. X3a-X47; iL 2. Z35-X39; iii. x. 7-X5, 30-43; iiL 6. 
«7-54» 95-99» X00-XX3; iil 7. 98-X06; iv. 2. 31-50, 53-59, 62-<59; iv. 3. (the whole 
scene); iv. 7. 85-97; v. 3. 304-23X. It is sometimes stated erroneously that only 
about fifty lines are omitted in the Quartos, and about two hundred and twenty 
in the Folios, 



INTRODUCTION ix 

original editions by the inclusion of all the passages 
which occur only in one or other of them. On the as- 
sumption that Shakespeare took no further care of the 
play once he had given it to the actors, the King Leal 
which we now have is a nearer approach to what it was 
when it left his hands. 

King Lear is one of the Shakespearian plays which were 
mangled at the Restoration. It appears to have been 
acted **as Shakespeare wrote it" between 1662 and 1665, 
and again in 1671 or 1672,^ but it was more popu- 
lar in the adapted version of Nahum Tate, which ^Jry. 
was produced and published in 1681.* Tate con- 
sidered the play "a heap of jewels, unstrung and un- 
polished ", and he set himself to give it what Restoration 
taste demanded. "Twas my good fortune", he says, 
" to light on one expedient to rectify what was wanting in 
the regularity and probability of the tale, which was to 
run through the whole a Love betwixt Edgar and Cor- 
delia, that never changed word with each other in the 
original. This renders Cordelia's indifference and her 
father's passion in the first scene probable. It likewise 
g^ves countenance to Edgar's disguise, making that a 
generous design that was before a poor shift to save his 
life. The distress of the story is evidently heightened by 
it; and it particularly gave occasion of a new scene or 
two, of more success (perhaps) than merit. This method 
necessarily threw me on making the tale conclude in a 
success to the innocent distrest Persons. . • . Yet I was 
wracked with no small fears for so bold a change, till 
I found it well received by my audience." The love- 
making and betrothal of Edgar and Cordelia, the restora- 
tion of Lear to his kingdom, the enforced moral that 
"truth and virtue shall at last succeed", the interpolated 
scenes, and the entire omission of the Fool, make this 
version a perfect botch of the original. But it held the 

1 See Downes, Roscius Ang^anus (ed. Davies, 1789), pp. 36 and 43. 
« Th€ History of King Lear. Acted at the Dmk^s Tktatre. Revit^d with 
Alterations. By N, Tate, London^ 1681, RepriaUd 1771. 



X KING LEAR 

8ta^ unchaUenged till the time of Gamck, and its tip- 
kerings were not totally discarded till well on in the nine* 
teenth century. Garrick's version, which was produced 
in 1756, was generally accepted for ahout fifty years.* 
With all his enthusiasm for Shakespeare, Garrick showed 
little regard for the plays as Shakespeare left them, and 
of none did he represent a more garbled version than of 
King Lear, It may not unfitly be described as an 
adaptation of Tate's. He restored certain passages and 
omitted many of Tate's additions, but he retained the 
love scenes and the happy ending, and after serious con- 
sideration decided that he could not include the Fool. 
The version which Colman produced in 1768 was a de^ 
cided improvement. He endeavoured in it, he says, ''to 
purge the tragedy of Lear of the alloy of Tate, which has 
so long been suffered to debase it ". He had the taste to 
recognize that the love scenes between Edgar and Cordelia 
were entirely out of place, and that, fer from heightening 
the distress of the story, as Tate had asserted, they dif- 
fused a languor over sdl the scenes from which Lear is 
absent. But he did not condemn Tate entirely. "To 
reconcile ", he says, " the catastrophe of Tate to the 
original story was the first grand object which I pro- 
posed to myself in this alteration." He thus expelled 
Tate from the first four acts, but retained him in the 
fifth; but, like Tate and Garrick, he would have none 
of the Fool, being '* convinced that such a character in 
a tragedy would not be endured on the modem stage ". 
Colman's version, however, was not popular because of 
the absence of the love scenes, and Garrick's or Tate's 
kept possession of the stage.* Throughout the eighteenth 
century, the happy ending, though invariably adopted by 
the actors, was a moot point of the critics. Addison 
condemned it and the ** ridiculous doctrine" of poetical 

1 The version of 1756 was not printed, but it is presunuibly the same as that 
published by Bell in 1773 or 1773. 

'See Genest, English Stagg, iv. 475; v. 191-003; viiL 131. Another version 
was produced by Kemble in 1809, but it was worse than Gazrick'«, (or K«i»blt 
nstored passages fron Tafea which Garrick had omittad. 



INTRODUCTION xi 

justice urged in its defence. ^* King Lear is an ad- 
mirable tragedy", he says, "as Shakespeare wrote it; 
but as it is reformed according to the chimerical notion 
of poetical justice, in my humble opinion it has lost half 
its beauty."^ Johnson was of the opposite opinion, and 
represents the prevailing taste of the time when he states 
with evident satisfaction that ** Cordelia, from the time 
' of Tate, has always retired with victory and felicity ". 
The new school of Shakespearian critics at the beginning 
of the nineteenth century, and particularly Lamb and 
Hazlitt, induced Kean to abandon the inartistic conclusion 
which had been in vogue for over a hundred and forty 
years. In 1820 he had followed Tate's version, but he 
had declared that *' the London audience have no notion 
what I can do until they see me over the dead body of 
Cordelia", and in 1S23, in obedience to his dramatic 
instincts and **the suggestion of men of literary emi- 
nence from the time of Addison", he gave the last act 
as originally written by Shakespeare. But even Kean 
did not restore the true version in the rest of the play, for 
Tate's love scenes were retained and the Fool was still 
excluded. Not till Macready's performance of the play 
in 1838 was the Fool again permitted to appear. But 
even in making this restoration Macready had consider- 
able misgivings. " My opinion of the introduction of the 
Fool", he wrote in his diary, ''is that, like many such 
terrible contrasts in poetry and painting, in acting-repre- 
sentation it will fail in e£fect; it will either weary, or annoy, 
or distract the spectator. I have no hope of it, and think 
that at the last we shall be obliged to dispense with it." 
Though he doubted the propriety of this part, he has the 
credit of restoring to the stage tiie true King" Lear. 

2. THE DATE OF THE PLAY 

The date of King- Lear is not known definitely ; but it 
is certain that the play was written between 1603 and 1606. 

1 SftctatOTt No. 4«w 



xii KING LEAR 

The later limit is fixed by external evidence. The first 
Quarto was entered in the Stationers' 
iS^^^ieSt' Registers under the date 26th November, 
1607, as ** A Booke called Master William 
Shakespeare his 'historye of Kinge Lear' as yt was 
played before the kinges maiestie at Whitehall vppon 
Sainct Stephens night at Christmas Last". The per- 
formance at Court mus# therefore have taken place on* 
St. Stephen's night (26th December), 1606. This is the 
only piece of external evidence that bears on the date' of 
the play. But there is internal evidence to show that 
Kin^ Lear was not written before 1603. As the notes 
point out, there are several passages which prove Shake- 
speare's knowledge of Harsnet's Declaration of Egre* 
gums Popishe Impostures. The names of 
]^i^lSi^?^^ ^e devils mentioned by Edgar when feign- 
ing madness are undoubtedly borrowed 
from this book,^ while certain other remarks made by him 
in his r61e of Tom ot Bedlam point to a like indebtedness.* 
Harsnet's book was entered in the Stationers' Registers on 
1 6th March, 1603, and appeared later in the same year. 

Unfortunately this is the only evidence that is at all 
definite. It is highly probable that the play was written 
in 1606, though the arguments urged in support of a date 
nearer the end than the beginning of the period from 1603 
to Christmas, 1606, are not conclusive. Malone notes 
that in iii. 4. 172 Edgar says " I smell the blood of a 
British man", and he argues therefrom 
SciSTS^d^^ that this must have been written after 
James's proclamation as King of Great 
Britain on 24th October, 1604. But it has been pointed 
out that as early as 1603, before even James's arrival in 
London, the poet Daniel addressed to him a Panegyrike 
Congratulatory^ which has the lines: — 

*< Shake hands with union, O thou mightie state, 
Now thou art all Great Britain, and no more, 
No Scot, no English now, nor no debate". 

1 See iil 4. xo6; iil 6. 6, 99; and iv. x. 60. * See il 4. 53, 54; iiL 4. 51; and ir. x. 6x. 



INTRODUCTION xiii 

His ailment has therefore little value. More weight 
attaches to the plea put forward by Mr. Aldis Wright, for, 
though it does not force acceptance, it strengthens the 
supposition of a late date. In the second scene of the 
first act there are references to ** these late eclipses in the 
sun and moon". In October, 1605, there was a great 
eclipse of the sun following on an eclipse of the moon 
in the previous month, and Mr. Wright argues that "it 
can scarcely be doubted that Shakespeare had in his mind 
the great eclipse, and that Lear was written while the 
recollection of it was still fresh, and while the ephemeral 
literature of the day abounded with pamphlets foreboding 
the consequences that were to follow".^ Similarly he 
hazards the further plausible suggestion that the refer- 
ence in the same scene to "machinations, hoUowness, 
treachery, and all ruinous disorders" may have been 
prompted by the Gunpowder Plot of 5th November, 1605. 
All this, however, is mere supposition. There were 
eclipses of the sun and moon in 1598 and again in 1601,' 
and it is not impossible that Shakespeare's words were 
suggested by a recollection of them. None the less, the 
trend of the argiunents, though inconclusive p^. , , ^^ 
in themselves, is to support the date 1606; ^* 

and as ITing- Lear was acted before James at Christmas, 
1606, and as the plays represented at Court were usually 
new plays, that date may be accepted.' 



3. THE SOURCES OF THE INCIDENTS 

The story of King Lear was familiar in various forms to 
the Elizabethans. From the twelfth to the sixteenth cen- 
tury it had been told again and agsdn in chronicles and 

1 Pre£u:e to the Clarendon Press edition, p. xvl 

• See King Lear^ ed. W. J. Craig (1901), p. xxiiL 

* The metrical evidence affords little or no assistance. For a statement of the 
metrical characterisdcs, see Fleay's Shakespeare Manual^ p. X36, and Prof. 
Ingram's paper on ' Li^t and Weak Endings' in the Transactions qf the Nem 
Shmkspere Society ^ 1874, pt iL 



1^ KING LEAR 

roinaiioes, both Frendi and English. It is first found in 
Thccariy *^® HistoHa Britomtm of Geoffrey of Mon* 
stories of mouth, written dbout 1135; but it is probably 

^^ of Celtic origin, for thb book professes to be 

founded on a Welsh chronide. It appears in French in 
Wace's Brut (c. 1155), which was derived from Geofirey's 
Latin history, and which in turn was the source of Laya- 
mon's Brut (1205), where the story is first given in English. 
Thereafter it is told in the metrical chronicles of Robert 
of Gloucester (c. 1300), Robert Manning (c. 1338), and 
John Harding (c. 1450), and in the more detailed prose 
dironicles of Robert Fabyan (15 16), John Rastell (The 
Pastime of the People^ 1530), Richard Grafton (1568), and 
Raphael Holinshed (1577), while a similar story is given 
in Camden's Remains (1605). Two versions of it occur in 
translations of the Gesta Romanorum, the great mediaeval 
storehouse of legendary tales. And it found a poeticid 
setting in Elizabethan literature in John Higgins's con- 
tribution to the Mirror for Magistrates (iS74)i in Warner's 
AlhiofCs Engiand (1586, ch. 14), and in Spenser's Faerie 
Queene (1590). Including the early play entitled the True 
Chronicle History of King Leiry which appeared in 1605,^ 
there are extant at least eight Elizabethan versions of 
earlier date than the dratfia by which it has been imi- 
mortalized. 

Of the contemporary versions Shakespeare may have 
known those in Holinshed's Chronicle^ the Mirror for 
Magistrates^ and the Faerie Queene? as well as the early 
play. 

1 There is entered b Ae Registers of the Stationers' Company, under the date 
X4th May, 1594, The motU famtnu Chr(miclt history* 0/ Leirekingt of Ei^^land 
and his Thru Daughters. No copy of diis is known, but it is probably the 
same as The TragecaU hisiork if king* Leir a$ul his Thftg Damg^Urt, 
which was entered on 8th May, 1605, and appeared in the same year with the 
following title, Ths True Chronicle Histoty of King Leir and his three 
DoMghtert, GonoriU, Ragun^ and Cordelia, As it hath bene diners tmd 
emtdry times lately acted This is reprinted in Nichols's Six Old Plays on vddch 
Shakespeare founded, 6v. (1779), and in W. C Hazlitt's Shdke^eaWs Librmsy 
(1875), pt ii., ToL ii. An ahstnct is #veii la FumMs'i ' Varionun Shakespeare*. 

* See the Appendix. 



INTRODUCTION xv 

Ho^nshed's Cknmicle was the gr«at source of Shake- 
speare's histories. Certain passages in some of them, e.^, 
Henry Fand Henry VIII ^ are little more than versified 
renderings of Holinshed's prose. But the fact iinsh«L 
that it provided so much material for Shake- 
speare's other plays has tended to overstatement of its 
influence on King Lear, In Holinshed's account Leir 
loved Cordeilla feu- above her two elder sisters, and in- 
tended her to succeed to his kingdom; but, being displeased 
with her answer at the love-test, he determined diat his 
land should be divided after his death between Gonorilla 
and Regan (who so feu- were unmarried), and that a half 
thereof should be immediately assigned them, while to 
Cordeilla he reserved nothing. But in time the two dukes 
whom the two eldest daughters had married rose against 
Leir and deprived him of the government, assigning him 
a portion on which to live. The daughters, however, 
seemed to think that whatever the father had was too 
much, and gradually curtailed his retinue. Leir was 
constrained to flee the country and seek comfort of Cor- 
deilla, who had married a prince of Gallia, and there 
he was honoured as if he had been king of the whole 
country himself. Cordeilla and her husband then raise 
a mighty army, cross over to Britain with Leir, and 
defeat the forces of Gronorilla and Regan. Leir is re- 
stored and rules for two years, and is succeeded by 
Cordeilla. It will be seen that Holinshed's story, meagre 
as it is, differs in many points from Shakespeare's. It 
was certainly not used as Uie basis of King Lear, Indeed 
there is absc^utely nothing to prove that Shakespeare 
consulted it, though the probability is, considering his 
use of other parts of the Chronicle^ that he had read it too. 

The story in the Mirror for Magistrates has more points 
of similarity. According to it, Leire intended '' to guerdon 
most where favour most he found " (cf. i. i. 
45, 46) ; and CordeU in her reply refers to the f^M^^utmU*. 
diance of bearing another more good-will, 
meaning a future husband (cf. i. i. 96, 97). Leire does 



xvi KING LEAR 

not resign the government at once, but is deprived of his 
crown and right by the husbands of Gronerell and Ragan, 
who promised him a guard of sixty knights. This number 
is reduced by half by Gonerell, whereupon Leire goes to 
Cornwall to stay with Ragan, who after a time took away 
all his retinue but ten, then allowed him but five, and 
finally but one. Another indignity he had to suffer was 
that "the meaner upstart courtiers thought themselves 
his mates". And his daughters called him a "doting 
fool". As in Holinshed, Leire flees to France, returns 
with Cordell and an army which proves victorious, and 
is restored to his kingdom. But generally this account 
bears a much closer resemblance than Holinshed's to the 
story of King- Lear. Some of the details of the Mirror far 
Magistrates are paralleled in Shakespeare's play.^ This, 
however, is a circumstance on which too great stress is 
apt to be laid, for similarity or even identity of idea does 
not prove indebtedness. The most striking point is 
CordelPs allusion in the love-test to her future husband. 
But it happens that in Camden's Remains a similar story 
of the love-test is told of Ina, king of the West Saxons, 
and there the youngest daughter replies to her father 
"flatly, without flattery, that albeit she did love, honour, 
and reverence him, and so would whilst she lived, as much 
as nature and daughterly duty at the uttermost could ex- 
pect, yet she did think that one day it would come to pass 
that she should affect another more fervently, meaning her 
husband, when she were married". Malone, who drew 
attention to this passage, thinks that Shakespeare had it 
in his thoughts rather than the lines in the Mirror for 
Magistrates^ as Camden's book had been published recently, 
and as a portion near at hand " furnished him with a hint 
in Coriolanus^\ No definite opinion can be advanced; but 
the effect is to render Shakespeare's debt to the Mirror 
for Magistrates only more doubtful. 

1 Perhaps the parallelisms are due to the intermediary of the early play, whidi 
resembles in several points the story in the Mirror for Magistrates. There 
wotild be less difficulty in showing the early dramatist's acquaintance with it 
than there is in showing Shakespeare's. 

(M006) 



INTRODUCTION ?cvS 

In one ^tpkiog point Shake^ear^ is indebt^ to Spenser. 
Jn Hojijoshed's Phroniclp the herqir^^'s name is 'CordeiUa', 
in the Mirror far Magistrates it is * CordeU', and ip ^e 
early play it is 'Cordelia': in Kin^ Lear the 
name has tbe beautiful form first adopted in the 
Faerie Qtieene,^ The two great Elizabethans are alike 
also in their divisipn of Lear's kingdom, for neitl^ejr ^lakes 
Lear reserve to himself any share in the government, while 
in Holinshed and the Mirror for Magistrates the two elder 
daughters are not given at once their full share, and wrest 
the supreme power by force of arms. Shakespeare is 
sometimes said to be indebted to the simile' in Spenser's 
account ; but this is a point which cannot be pressed. 

We are on surer ground in dealing with the early play, 
the anon3mious True Chronicle History of King Leir, 
The main incidents of this drama, and in particular some 
of its deviations from the usual story, have their 
counterpart in King Lear, In one of his snatches ^f^ w 
of song, Shakespeare's fool speaks of "That ' 

lord that counsell'd thee to give away thy land " (i. 4. 132, 
133). There is nothing in the rest of the play to explain 
the allusion; but we find that in the old play the love-test 
is proposed by a courtier, Skalliger by name, and that Lear 
at once resigns his whole kingdom to Gonorill and Ragan. 
Another courtier, Perillus, who is entirely the early drama- 
tist's own invention, is the prototype of Kent. He pleads 
for Cord^a, but in vain, and afterwards, with Kent's 
fidelity, attends in disguise on the old king. A mes- 
senger, and the miscarriage of letters, j^ay an important 
part in the development of the plot. Again, in the pathetic 
scene in which Leir comes to recognize Cordelia, he 
kneels to her (cf. iv. 7. 59). These are some of the most 
striking points of similarity in the development of the two 
plays. But indebtedness may be traced even in minor 

1 Speiu^ Qi^Qe lm9 the form ' Q>srdei^ \ apparently shortjened from Hplinahe^'s 
'.CprdeiUa*. It would appear that tl^e exigencies of metre suggested ' Corde^'* 
^g^pser ivas und^tedly jndebted to HolUist^ iqr t^e «toiy. 

* See i. 4. 307. 

'M906) B 



xviu KING LEAR 

matters. We seem to catch an echo now and then of 
some of the statements and phrases of the old play. 
Thus— 

" I am as kind as is the pellican, 
That kils it selfe to save her young ones lives ", 

reminds us of Lear's reference to his ** pelican daughters " 
(iii. 4. 71). The allusion to GonorilPs " young bones "— * 

** poore soule, she breeds yong bones. 
And that is it makes her so tutchy sure " — 

suggests ii. 4. 159, while the sentiment is the same as 
that expressed in ii. 4. 102-108. It is probable, too, that 
Perillus*s description of his master as ** the mirror of 
mild patience" had some bearing on the finer phrase 
which Shakespeare puts in the mouth of Lear himself, 
"the pattern of all patience" (iii. 2. 33). There can be 
no doubt that Shakespeare knew this early play. In 
itself it is of little account ; and yet there are not want- 
ing qualities which show that the story only awaited the 
master hand to touch it to finer issues. 

It is also certain that Sidney's Arcadia^ is the source of 
the Gloucester story — the underplot which is interwoven 
with marvellous skill and is so striking a foil to the main 

theme. The protot3rpes of Gloucester and Edgar 
5m^. ^® *^® ** Paphlagonian unkind king and his 

kind son", whose "pitiful state" is recounted 
in the second book of Sidney's pastoral romance. Though 
the story is reproduced in all its essentials, it has fur- 
nished Shakespeare with nothing but the bare facts of 
his underplot.* 

But when all Shakespeare's borrowings are put together 
—even though account be taken of those matters in which 

1 See the Appendix. 

* Some of the older critics, e^. Johnson and Hazlitt, thought that the play 
was " founded upon an old ballad ", King Leire and kit Thrte Daughters. But 
the ballad, which is given in Percy's ReUqua ofAncUttt Poiiry, is of later date 
than the play. 



INTRODUCTION xix 

his debt is very doubtful — ^how small a part do they form 
of King LearX The intermingling of the gmaiiness 
Gloucester episode has entailed new incidents of Shake- 
and changed the working out of the catas- *p**"*"* 
trophe. The presence of Edmund enhances the villainy 
of Goneril and Regan, and their adulterous love leads 
to their deaths. In the older versions their part was 
ended with the victory of Lear. Shakespeare alone has 
given a sad ending to the play. Though, as we have 
seen, he incurred thereby the censure of eighteenth cen- 
tury critics and actors, it is the only ending that is artisti- 
cally possible. That Lear should be restored and reign 
happily is fitting enough in the meagre stories of Holin- 
shed or the early dramatist, but the tragic intensity, which 
Shakespeare could give the more easily by the addition 
of the Gloucester episode, makes any other ending than his 
lame and inept. There is no borrowing in the feigned 
madness of Edgar, nor in the real madness of Lear — the 
central circumstance, the very essence of the play; and 
the character of the Fool is Shakespeare's creation. In 
these points, as in all that gives the play its value, the 
only "source" is Shakespeare himself. In addition 
there is the whole setting, and in particular the storm 
which symbolizes the "great commotion in the moral 
world"; and there is the characterization, by which the 
shadows and puppets of the early stories are turned into 
flesh and blood. 

4. CRITICAL APPRECIATION 

The play of King Lear presents certain peculiarities in 
point of structure. It diverges considerably from the 
form of the Shakespearian dramas with which it is 
generally associated, Hamlet^ Othello^ and 
Miicbeth, and it is even more irregular than 
the first of these. It is unique in the importance of the 
opening scene. There is no introductory passage to 
explain or throw light on the story which is to be un- 



n KING JUEAR 

M6^ .or, as iit Jfacihtti, to symhQlm kt We f^tp kh 
tro4u9e4 straightway ti9 tho itf^oa pfi which th« v.hqjl^ 
play dfipends. The first soefift 09 this Acconi^t hi^;? hcii^^ 
stigmatized by Goethe ^is ijT9iti«o«|; but tiie ^H^ryctitf-^ 
of tliA pUy emphasizes tim fact that ihe deeds whifik 
^ ^ /Call the pla^ into beio^ an9 in .then»selv;^ f^ 

The first scene. -• - . ,-jrT -. - 

Uttl£ KBportao^e^ Am^ Z^«r r^o^niis the 
cemaeqmuices fyHowmg inevitaUy on a n^h mi ^^^1^^^ 
acL AnodiQT .^rrangemfiat 0^ the openh»g $Q6PQ$ wau^ 
have ttcaded to give jBoce prx^imn^b^ tbun thi^ tbfim» of 
the draiaaa aiUpwed to aa act which is jiiippnt^jt 9fily iipi 
«p fisu* as it is the occasion cif others^ 

The iniportance of the :wi^q>lot 19 t^e /^^ps^t ^P^bje 
point 1^ the structure of H^i^nigr i^^'^p Its he^i^g ^9 itfoe 
whoie play seen^s almost to ^lark it put as a .survival 
The underplot. ^ *^ xUscardftd ip^T^WyLsm^ pf the ^ftrlier 
coi^^ies. But it has a purely aiiti^^ vahJie, 
%xc It is added «iQt in iC^er to cQiwpli^ate 01* sjofyi h«t 
to eoforc^ its nipttve. It is ja laot a Kfiyxxfi^i^m^ vin^i^- 
tion oi the undorplpt, ix charaqfceri«tie gi ifti^ xgm^^fi^ 
dmoaa .on which the fenrmal ^as$k^ cfitif^ loodcc;^ q- 
skance. The .G^uoester «tory has h«d its AiU shai^ of 
condensuaation hy thosie who 9ce i]^^u4iQ^ by recpgaiz^ 
dramadc mUes. Jps^fh Warton, for iost^jC^i sing^ 
jQut, as x)ne of Ihe -•cwsiderjijye isi^^^e^ptipns'*' wa^ 
which the |>lay is 4:harg-eaWe, **?t)be pjpt cl" Ete^tvi 
against his brother, which distracts thf j$#e|itipn ^q4 
destroys the unity of the fable".* His other observa- 
tions on Kim^ f^efur ^iM;^ p^^s^^.es qf whole-hearted 
and eloquent praise, but on this point he was so blinded 
by th* |^reyailii\g ^;l$i«^<^s^ pjf tjie Qijghteen|:h ,q^ti^ as 
tp fj^l 4p ^ecogsni^ #at tl^ w^lerplot; iaf from ^^^tri^ict- 
ing Ijlii* .^tt^ntipn, r,9ally adds tp th<e intci^sity, ;^c^ 
objections h^^ bean ^^nswc^^ once ^nd for all in , a 
memorable pa^sag^ by $chU^«l. ** The iiv^orppr^tiop ,of 
,^ ^wo :^,tioij^ ]h«t^ been c^^ui^ p& 4esitii;upt;ive of t^^e 

1 Tkt Ad/vHturtTt No. zaa, 5th January, 1754, Warton's third and 
yap^r gf '''-Obicrvatioat on f^iMg L§aar^, 



iNfKciWudfidN 1^ 

\iiCM &f ^tfiofi. BtLt WMtei/i^ 66fttri!ftit^ to fli^ IfltrlglW 
6t ike aJnoii^fheiU rfitisf always possess ttrti^. Artd With 
what ingenuity and skill are the two main pA^ts (if thd 
compositibtl dovetailed ititd oft^ another f The pity felt 
hf 6(6t^c'estef- fbt- th^ fate 6f Le&t be^fhei ^ef Ai^Ms^ 
Mick 6hdbie^ his soft £ditiufid td tffec^ hh t^tnpM^ 
destruction, arid affords tfe oiitcd^t Edg^f an oppor- 
tunity ot being the ^ftVloiir 6f his feth^. 6ii the other 
hand, fidffiUiid is Active iti the ^tise df Regftil ^lAd 
ciofierii, ^fid the tArtiiMl jjiafeiort Which they bdth eft*. 
Uttilih Tot hifii induces them id ei^eciite jti^tice m eUch 
other kni dft ttlfefhseives. the kws of tlie diaifta havef 
therefore l>eetl sdflSctently e6riiplied With ; bilt thitt h ^6 
ieast. It is the Very cOttibiMtion which cdrt^itute* th6 
sdblirfie beauty of the Work. The tWd ^^ei i-eseftibte 
each other in the hi^iti: ah itifetukted ^thei" h blirtd 
towaMs his Weil-dispbsed thiM, drtd the uttn^tliral chil- 
dren, Whdfft he prefers, t^uite hinii by the rutri Of all hi* 
happifiess. BUt dll the circumstahcesj Are §6 dlflfefeftt 
that these §t6He&, while they esieh liiake k ebffespOftdeftt 
Impressibh oh the heart, fdftth a cortiplete eohtrti^t for 
the iniagirtatiOh. Were Leaf- alotte td stiffer frdM hl« 
daughters, the impfesstdn WoUld be limited tO the pdWei*-* 
fill cdmpAS^idh felt W us fdk- hi^ pHvslte ttisfbrtune. BtH 
two shch iihhedl-d-df et&rtipies takirtgf pkce at the sattie 
time have the appekrande of A gi^t eortttnotidH Ifi the 
hioral wdHd.**i the fetdrjr of the victim of his dWn ffiii* 
deeds i^ so Skilfiilly interWdveft with the ^tdry of the Vlfctiitt 
of his iridiscretiohs, ahd i^ brdiight ilitd Sd suggestive 
dppositioh, that the efletit of each 1§ fttdre iitlpfesiivea 
The GidUcestei* stdrV iil itself ddes Adt dffef slhy strikirtg 
chance of successftil draihatlfc tteattiiefit, attd in respect 
6t the feigfted hiadftefes df Edgkf- ftithe*- lettd& itself td 
cdfhedy, but it attains a tftiglc pdWei- by its feSSdclatldA 
with die story df Leah 6h the dthei* haftdj the rii^fl 
theme IS raised by this ednjUhetidn abdve & pufely peiv* 

1 A; W. Schte^eH £*ci4rm 0h Dramatic Aft ami LitmUun (Eafi^ trans- 
lation, 1879, p. 4x3). 



xxii KING LEAR 

sonal matter, and we are the more readily brought to 
think of Lear, not as the man, but as the victim of filial 
ingratitude. 

Despite these apparently discordant elements, King- 
Lear has complete unity of spirit. But in achieving this 
imity the art of Shakespeare has nowhere triumphed 
more completely than in the case of the Fool. 
In less sldlfiil hands his presence would have 
been inimical to the pity and terror of the tragedy. We 
have seen how actors, for a period of over a hundred and 
fifty years, from the days of Tate to Macready, banished 
him fi-om the stage from a faulty recognition of the im- 
port of his part. Even in restoring him Macready did not 
do him justice, for he regarded him as a mere youth, and 
accordingly entrusted the part to an actress. The Fool's 
remarks are only those of a man of full and rich experience 
of life. He is not a clown like Othello's servant, intro- 
duced merely for the sake of variety. He bears a much 
closer resemblance to the Fools of the later comedies, to 
Touchstone in As You Like It and Feste in Twelfth Night, 
As Touchstone, "he uses his folly like a stalking-horse, 
and under the presentation of that he shoots his [wiV*. 
At first there is a sharpness in his taunts, for he hopes 
thereby, with the frankness that is the privilege of his 
position, to awaken the king to a knowledge of what he 
has done. Afterwards, when the worst has come to the 
worst, his wit has the gentler aim of relieving Lear's 
anguish. He no longer ** teaches" Lear, but "labours 
to outjest his heart-struck injuries". He seems to give 
expression to the thought lurking deep in Lear's mind, 
as is shown by the readiness with which Lear catches at 
everything he says, or to voice the counsels of discretion. 
And he finally disappears from the play when Lear is mad. 
The Fool is, in fact, Lear's familiar spirit. He is Lear's 
only companion In the fateful step of going out into the 
night and braving the storm. Even then, as if in astonish- 
ment that his sorrows had not destroyed all his regard for 
others, Lear says, "I have one part in my heart that'a 



INTRODUCTION xxiii 

sorry yet for thee". How then, may it be asked, can the 
Fool possibly be omitted from King Lear? Apart from 
this consideration, the Fool has an important function in 
the drama. The eighteenth century actors unconsciously 
testified to this, for when they banished the Fool as **a 
character not to be endured on the modem stage", they, 
with one exception — and success did not attend this effort — 
made good the want by mawkish love scenes. These 
they preferred to a rftle which was regarded only as bur- 
lesque. But the artful prattle of the Fool does more than 
give variety and relax the strain on one's .feelings. It 
makes Lear*s lot endurable to us, but at the same time 
it gives us a keener sense of its sadness. The persistent 
reminders of Lear's folly, the recurring presentment of 
ideas in a new and stronger light, the caustic wit hidden 
in a seemingly casual remark, all bring home more forci- 
bly the pity of Lear's plight In a word, the Fool in- 
tensifies the pathos by relieving it.^ 

The character of Lear is distinct from those of most of 
Shakespeare's heroes in that it is not revealed gradually. 
He is described fully in the very first scene. He has had 
a successful reign, but he is not a strong man. He 
is headstrong and rash, and old age has brought 
** unruly waywardness " and vanity. The play as a whole 
deals with the effects produced upon this passionate 
character by a foolish act for which he is alone responsi- 
ble. The story is strictly that of a British king who began 
to rule ** in the year of the world 3105, at what time Joas 
reigned in Juda". But Shakespeare has converted it into 
a tale of universal interest. He makes it but a basis for 
what Keats has called "the fierce dispute betwixt Hell 

1 In this connection it is well to record the opinion of Shelley, expressed in his 
Defence of Poetry : " The modem practice of blending comedy with tragedy, 
though liable to great abuse in point of practice, is undoubtedly an extension of 
the dramatic circle; but the comedy should be, as in King Lear^ universsd, 
ideal, sublime. It is perhaps the intervention of this principle which determines 
the balance in favour of King Lear against (Edipus Tyrannus or the Agamem' 
non. . , . King Lear, if it can sustain this comparison, may be judged to be the 
most perfect q;>ecimen of the dramatic art existing in the world, in q>ite of the 
narrow conditions to which the poet was subjected by the ignwance of the 
philosophy of the drama which has i»revailed in modem Europe." 



idd^ kiNG LEAR 

torment ^a impassiohed tlaiy".^ All the detail^ bf flife' 
story are of little importance in themselves, and the art 
of Shakespeare makes us forget them in thihkmg of thfer 
total efiect to which they contribute, 'tiie real subject 
of the play is not so much Lear as the outraged passibfi 
of filial affection. ** wobody from reading Shakespeare '*, 
Sjays Hazlitt, ** would know (except from the Drantdiis 
Persona) that Lear was an EngHsh king. He is niereiy 
a king ana a father. The ground is common: but what 
a well of tears has he diig out of it ! Ttliere are nb dabi 
in history to go upon ; no advantage is taken of costume, 
no acquaintance with geography or arcnitecture or dialect 
is necessary; but there is an old tradition, human nature 
— an old temple, the human mind — and Shatespeare walks' 
into it and looks about him with a ibrdly eye, and seized 
on the sacred spoils as his 6wh. The story is a thousaiici 
or two years old, and yet the tragedy has no smack of 
antiquarianism in it."* li is this universal quality which 
allows such anachronisms as that one character should 
personate a madman of ihe seventeenth century and 
speak a south-western dialect, or that another should 
refer to the riiles of chivalry. The very greatness of 
ICin^ Lear, the subordination and even abrogation of all 
detail, abundant tnough it is, made Charles Lamb declare 
the play essentially impossible to be representea oh k 
stage. "The greatness of Lear", he says, "is not iii 
corporal diihensiori, but in intellectual: the explosions of 
his passion are terrible as a volcano: they are storm^ 
turning up and disclosing to the bottom that sea, hi^ 
mind, wiUi all its vast riches, tt is his mind which is 
laid bare. This case of ftesh and blood seems too in- 
significant to be thought on; even as he himself neglects 
it. On the stag'e we see nothing but corporal infirmities 
and weakness, the impbtence of rage; while we i-ead it, 
we see not Lear^ but we are Lear."^ His suffe^ngs 

* Sonnet written Uftrre re'rettding * King Lear*. 

k Hazlitf, ' Scott, iUdhe, arid Shak<i$peare' iil tHe PUtn-SpHtkir, 

• Lamb, On the Tragedies ofShhkesfeart, 



INTkotiuetldN XXV 

bring out ^ood qualities which have befefl Stunted ill for- 
tune. \Vhen v^fe first kho^ hitn he is io self-centred as 
to bfe absolutely regardlesi of others. But he cohies to 
suspect his own "jfealous curiosity" (i. 4. 67), tries to 
find art fexctise for his enemies (ii. 4. i6i-io8), an<i is 
finally niOved to cohtritioftf for his former ittdiflference to 
the lot of even his nifednest sufcject^ (ill. 4- ^^i^)* He 
knows he must be patient ** You heavens, give nie that 
patience, patience I rieed *' (il. 4. 268). He asserts that he 
will be the "pattern of all platiehce" (ill. 2, 33). But the 
blow has coitife tbo late. His fond old heart cdnnot en- 
dure the outrage of **the offices of nature, bond of 
Childhdod, Effects of courtesy, dues of gratitude ". He is 
tod old to l^rn resignatioh; His rfemirks oiily Ittci-easfe 
in Intensity. Wheh he meets Regan sifter his rebuff by 
(Grdneril, he cart greet her only by sstying that If she is 
iiot glad to ^ee him, her hiother must have been ah 
adiiltreSs (ii. 4. 126-128). At last hfe becomes almost in- 
articulate with passion (ii. 4. 275-283). The strain is 
too great, and the bohds of fedsbri snap. Of this the 
p'remohitibns Have been sb Skilfully givto that his mad- 
ness seems inevitable.* Yet he codld riever more truly 
say that he i^as "every inch a Idng" thari when he 
threW aside the lendiri^S of royalty ind stbbd against 
the dfeep dread-boltfe(i thunder, atid defied the villainy of 
his unnatural daughters; If he bafileS oUr sympathy of 
regard in the height of his fortune, he wins our feVer- 
fence now; and the imaginatidn fondly lingers ovfef his 
recognition bf Cordelia and his contentment with prison 
if only she is with him, and finds his early folly rtbbly 
expiated in his condiict at her death and his inability to 
live without her.* 

1 Several accounts of the course of Lear's madness have heen givfeii hy medicki 
itien: See, for escample, Bucknill's Miui Poik 0/ Skaket^are, i>p. 160-335. 

* The (EdipM9 Colatuu* of Sophocles offers a remarkable compiar^n with 
King Lear. CEdipus, too, b a man more sinned against than sinning (see note, 
ii). 3. 55X but he has leained patience and self-control imd ha^ a Strength of 
bharact^t- ^i^kntihgr ih th6 aged L«ar. . His ciirte on Polynice^ is evfcn more 
tbrrible than liar's on Gondii, becaufe it is delil:^rate> U14 ^^'^ '^^^ spring from 
a passionate dMire of revenge. And Antigone is i "^ 



xxvi KING LEAR 

Yet this ending, as beautiful as it is inevitable, has 
been condemned on the score of what is called ''poetical 
justice *'. As Lear is a man more sinned against than 
sinning, some would have him restored to 
his kingdom. But crime is not the chief 
tragic motive in the Shakespearian drama any more 
than in that of Greece. Lear is guilty of an error, and 
through it he meets his fate. The play of Macbeth is 
an exception to the general rule, in that the tragedy is 
founded upon crime; on the other hand, Hamlet and 
Othello, for instance, resemble Lea^ in being the victims 
of their own character and the circumstances in which 
they are placed. Cordelia can well say, "we are not 
the first. Who with best meaning have incurred the 
worst". That she and Lear, after all that has happened, 
should not incur the worst would be contrary to the 
Shakespearian method, if only for the reason that it 
would be glaringly inartistic. Much as we regret Lear's 
fate, it alone can satisfy our sense of the fitness of things. 
As Charles Lamb has put it with admirable force: **A 
happy ending! — as if the living martyrdom that Lear 
had gone through, the flaying of his feelings alive, did 
not make a fair dismissal from the stage of life the only 
decorous thing for him. If he is to live apd be happy 
after, if he could sustain this world's burden after, why 
all this pudder and preparation, why torment us with 
all this unnecessary s)rmpathy? As if tiie childish pleasure 
of getting his gilt robes and sceptre again could tempt 
him to act over again his misused station, — as if at his 
years, and with his experience, anything was left but to 
die." But, it may be asked, does this ending, which is 
in accordance with artistic necessity, entirely fail to satisfy 
the claims of poetical justice? Lear is not troubled by 
the loss of his kingdom. Why, then, should his kingdom 
be restored to him, the more especially as he had in his 
sane mind given it away? What he feels is not the 
actual diminution of his train by his daughters and their 
other unkindnesses so much as the brutality which 



INTRODUCTION xxvii 

prompted these acts. Justice can be done him, not by 
restoration to his kingdom, but by restoration to filial 
respect, and it is satisfied by the love of Cordelia. That 
alone '' does redeem all sorrows that ever I have felt *\ 



DRAMATIS PERSONiE 

Lear, King of Britain. 
King of France. 
Duke of Burgundy. 
Duke of Cornwall. 
Duke of Albany. 
Earl of Kent. 
Earl of Gloucester. 
Edgar, son to Gloucester. 
Edmund, bastard son to Gloucester. 
CuRAN, a courtier. 
Old Man, tenant to Gloucester. 
Doctor. 
FooL 

Oswald, steward to Goneril. 
A Captain employed by Edmund. 
Gentleman attendant on Cordelia. 
A Herald. 

Servants to Cornwall. 
Goneril, ^ 

Regan, j- daughters to Lear. 
Cordelia, J 

Knights of Lear's train, Captains, Messengers, Soldiers^ 
and Attendants. 

Scene: Britain. 

ZXTiii 



KING JLEAR 



ACT I 

J^qjSN^ I, fCin^r f^cf.t^s pqJc^ 

Enter Kent, Gloucester, and Edmund 

Kent I thovgf^jt ^e \a,^^ H^ V^9^P <9j6Eepte4 4ve PuJ^e 
of Albany tjjan Co^i^wall. 

Qlqu, It did always see^ ^o to ^&!i, Wt ^o^^ ^in ]t^e 
division of the Ipi^gdpf^j i(t appears s\9^ W^ch of ti^^ d^V^ 
h^e vajli^e$ mos^> for equalities ar;e so wei£^h€(d^ jth^t cuiio- 
sity m neiU?^ ca^ ma^^ cl^oice of ett^er'j^ i^pie^. 6 

AT^n/. Is not this your ,§on^ i^y lor^^ 

Glou, His breeding, sir, hath beien ^t ^y ch^rgje: I J^yje 
so often blusbe^ to acknpwjie4ge hji^^ ^at fiorff J. ajfi 
brazed to it. Do you sine^l a fj^ult? > ;o 

Kent I canpot wi^ tk^ f^ult un^^o^e^ the i^ue qf It 
being- so proper. 

jC^m- But I hay^, sjf , a swj by order pf l^w, ^me y/ear 
elder than this, who yet is no dearer in my account: tti^ugh 
this knave came so^e^ij^ig s^iM^My J^Pto thi& ^^Id befoxje 
be was sent for, y^ ^as hjs motb/er f;;^^, and he m^t 
be acto>o.vMg«d, Ro ypi^ k^w It^ rwa^e gc^Ujlei?ia,n, 
Edmund? 

Edm. No, wy lQr4. 19 

Glou, My lord of Kent : rem^pij^er hw ^i©f«?ft€f as xny 
honowrable friend. 

Edm. My services to your lordship. 

Ke^t I must love y^u, a,nd sue tp ^mpw y W better. 

Edm. Sir, I ^aH study deserving. 

Glou. He hath been out nioe year^i wd away fe® i^^^^ 
again. The king is coming. ^ 

1 



a KING LEAR [Act I 

Sennet Enter Kino Lear, Cornwall, Albany, Goneril, 
Rbgan, Cordelia, and Attendants 

Lear, Attend the lords of France and Burgundy, Glou- 
cester. 

Glou, 1 shall, my liege. 

[Exeunt Gloucester and Edmund 

Lear Meantime we shall express our darker purpose. 
Give me the map there. Know that we have divided 30 
In three our kingdom: and 'tis our fast intent 
To shake all cares and business from our age, 
Conferring them on younger strengths, while we 
Unburthen'd crawl toward death. Our son of Cornwall, 
And you, our no less loving son of Albany, 35 

We have this hour a constant will to publish 
Our daughters* several dowers, that ftiture strife 
May be prevented now. The princes, France and Burgundy, 
Great rivals in our youngiest daughter's love, 
Long in our court have made their amorous sojourn, 40 
And here are to be answered. Tell me, my daughters, — 
Since now we will divest us, both of rule. 
Interest of territory, cares of state, — 
Which of you shall we say doth love us most? 
That we our largest bounty may extend 45 

Where nature doth with merit challenge. Goneril, 
Our eldest-bom, speak first. 

Gan, Sir, I love you more than words can wield the 
matter; 
Dearer than eye-sight, space, and liberty; 
Beyond what can be valued, rich or rare; 50 

No less than life, with grace, health, beauty, honour; 
As much as child e'er loved, or father found; 
A love that makes breath poor, and speech unable; 
Beyond all manner of so much I love you. 

Cor, [Aside] What shall Cordelia do? Love, and be 
silent. ^ 55 

Lear, Of all these bounds, even from this line to this. 
With shadowy forests and with champains rich'd. 
With plenteous rivers and wide-skirted meads. 
We make thee lady: to thine and Albany's issue 



Scene z] KING LEAR 3 

Be this perpetual. What says our second daughter, 60 
Our dearest Regan, wife to Cornwall? Speak. 

Reg, I am made of that self metal as my sister, 
And prize me at her worth. In my true heart 
I find she names my very deed of love; 
Only she comes too short: that I profess 65 

Myself an enemy to all other joys, 
Which the most precious square of sense possesses; 
And find I am alone felicitate 
In your dear highness' love. 

Cor, [Aside] Then poor Cordelia I 

And yet not so; since, I am sure, my love 's 70 

More ponderous than my tongue. 

Lear, To thee and thine hereditary ever 
Remain this ample third of our fair kingdom; 
No less in space, validity, and pleasure. 
Than that conferred on Goneril. Now, our joy, 75 

Although the last, not least, to whose young love 
The vines of France and milk of Burgundy 
Strive to be interess'd, what can you say to draw 
A third more opulent than your sisters? Speak. 

Cor, Nothing, my lord. 80 

Lear, Nothing! 

Cor, Nothing. 

Lear, Nothing will come of nothing: speak again. 

Cor, Unhappy that I am, I cannot heave 
My heart into my mouth: I love your majesty 85 

According to my bond; nor more nor less. 

Lear. How, how, Cordelia ! mend your speech a little. 
Lest it may mar your fortunes. 

Cor, Good my lord, 

You have begot me, bred me, loved me: I 
Return those duties back as are right fit, 90 

Obey you, love you, and most honour you. • 
Why have my sisters husbands, if they say 
They love you all? Haply, when I shall wed, 
That lord whose hand must take my plight shall carry 
Half my love with him, half my care and duty: 95 

Sure, I shall never marry like my sisters. 
To love my father all. 



4 KmQ J-EAR [Act I 

LeaK But gotsi thy beait ^ritb this? 

Cor. Ay, g;qod n^y lord. 

Lear. So yojung, und 90 untender? 

Con So yoiing, my lord, and true. iqo 

Lear, Let it be so; thy truth then be thy dowr: 
For, by the sacred radiance of the sun, 
The mysteries of Hecate, and the night; 
By all the Qpera^on of the orbs 

From whom we do exist and cease to be; ^ 

Here I disclaim all my patema) care, 
Propinquity and property of blood, 
And as a stranger to my heart and nie 
Hold thee from this for ever. The barbarous S.^t^laii; 
Or he that makes his generation m,ess.e3 ^ 10 

To gorge his appetite, shall to my bQ^opi 
Be as well neighbour*d, pitied, and relieyeid, 
As thou my sometii^e daughter. 

•Kent Good P?y Uege,— 

Lear, Peace, Kent J 
Come not between the dragon and his wrath. ^15 

I loved her most, and thougjbt tg set my rest 
On her kind nursery. Hence, and avoid my sight ! 
So be my grave my peace, as here I give 
Her father's heart from her! Call France. WhQ stir$? 
Call Burgundy. Cornwall and Albany, 120 

With my two daughters* dow,erg digest this third: 
Let pride, which she calls plainness, m^rry her. 
I do invest you jointly with my power, 
Pre-ieminence, and ail the large effects 
That troop with majesty. Ourself, by n\op,thly qqurse, 125 
With reserv^jtion of an hundred knights, 
By you to be sustained, shall pur abode 
Make with you by due turns. Only w.e stilj rei^iipi 
The name, and all the additions to a king; 
The sway, revenue, execution of the rest, 130 

Beloved sons, be yours: whidi to confirm^ 
This coronet part betwixt yQu. [Qivf^g' ^ crofwn 

Kent Royal Lear, 

Whom I have ever honoured a? ^y king, 
Loved as my father, as my master fqlilQw*d, 



Scene z] KING LEAR 5 

As my great patron thought on in my prayers, — 135 

Lear, The bow is bent and drawn, make from the shaJfL 
Kent Let it fall rather, though the fork invade 
The region of my heart: be Kent unmannerly, 
When Lear is mad. What wilt thou do, old man? 
Think'st thou that duty shall have dread to speak, 140 

When power to flattery bows ? To plainness honour's bound, 
When majesty stoops to folly. Reverse thy doom. 
And in thy best consideration check 
This hideous rashness: answer my life my judgement. 
Thy youngest daughter does not love thee least; 145 

Nor are those empty-hearted whose low sound 
Reverbs no hollowness. 
Lear, Kent, on thy life, no more. 

Kent, My life I never held but as a pawn 
To wage against thy enemies; nor fear to lose it, 
Thy safety being the motive. 
Lear, Out of my sight ! 150 

Kent, See better, Lear; and let me still remain 
The true blank of thine eye. 
Lear, Now, by Apollo, — 

Kent, Now, by Apollo, king. 

Thou swear'st thy gods in vain. 
Lear,, O, vassal ! miscreant ! 

\Laying his hand an his sword 

^ ' I Dear sir, forbear. 155 

Kent, Do; 
Kill thy physician, and the fee bestow 
Upon thy foul disease. Revoke thy doom; 
Or, whilst I can vent clamour from my throat, 
I 'II tell thee thou dost evil. 

Lear, Hear me, recreant I 160 

On thine allegiance, hear me ! 
Since thou hast sought to make us break our vow. 
Which we durst never yet, and with strain'd pride 
To come between our sentence and our power. 
Which nor our nature nor our place can bear, 165 

Our potency made good, take thy reward. 
Five days we do allot thee, for provision 

(MOO6) c 



6 KING LEAR [Act I 

To shield thee from diseases of the world; 

And on the sixth to turn thy hated back 

Upon our kingdom: if on die tenth day following 170 

Thy banished trunk be found in our dominions, 

The moment is thy death. Away I by Jupiter, 

This shall not be revoked. 

Kent, Fare thee well, king: sith thus thou wilt appear. 
Freedom lives hence, and banishment is here. 175 

\To Cordelid\ The gods to their dear shelter take thee, maid. 
That justly think'st, and hast most rightly saidl 
\To Regan and Goneril] And your large speeches may 

your deeds approve. 
That good effects may spring from words of love. 
Thus Kent, O princes, bids you all adieu; 180 

He '11 shape his old course in a country new. [Exit 

Flourish, Re-enter Gloucester, with France, 
Burgundy, and Attendants 

Glou, Here 's France and Burgundy, my noble lord. 

Lear. My lord of Burgundy, 
We first address towards you, who with this king 
Hath rivaird for our daughter: what, in the least, 185 

Will you require in present dower with her. 
Or cease your quest of love? 

Bur. Most royal majesty, 

I crave no more than what your highness offer'd, 
Nor will you tender less. 

Lear, Right noble Burgundy, 

When she was dear to us, we did hold her so; 190 

But now her price is fall'n. Sir, there she stands: 
If aught within that little seeming substance. 
Or all of it, with our displeasure pieced. 
And nothing more, may fitly like your grace. 
She 's there and she is yours. 

Bur, I know no answer. 195 

Lear, Will you, with those infirmities she owes. 
Unfriended, new-adopted to our hate, 
Dower'd with our curse, and stranger'd with our oath, 
Take her, or leave her? 



Scene z] KING LEAR 7 

Bur. Pardon me, royal sir; 

Election makes not up on such conditions. 200 

Lear, Then leave her, sir; for, by the power that made 
me, 
I tell you all her wealth. [To France] For you, great 

king, 
I would not from your love make such a stray. 
To match you where I hate; therefore beseech you 
To avert your liking a more worthier way 205 

Than on a wretch whom nature is ashamed 
Almost to acknowledge hers. 

France. This is most strange, 

That she, that even but now was your best object, 
The argument of your praise, balm of your age, 
Most best, most dearest, should in this trice of time 210 
Commit a thing so monstrous, to dismantle 
So many folds of favour. Sure, her offence 
Must be of such unnatural degree. 
That monsters it, or your fore-vouch'd affection 
Fall'n into taint: which to believe of her, 215 

Must be a faith that reason without miracle 
Could never plant in me. 

Cor. I yet beseech your majesty, — 

If for I want that glib and oily art. 
To speak and purpose not, since what I well intend, 
I ^1 do 't before I speak, — that you make known 220 

It is no vicious blot, murder, or foulness, 
No unchaste action, or dishonour'd step. 
That hath deprived me of your grace and favour; 
But even for want of that for which I am richer, 
A still-soliciting eye, and such a tongue 225 

As I am glad I have not, though not to have it 
Hath lost me in your liking. 

Lear. Better thou 

Hadst not been bom than not to have pleased me better. 

France. Is it but this, — k tardiness in nature 
Which often leaves the history unspoke 230 

That it intends to do? My lord of Burgundy, 
What say you to the lady? Love *s not love 
When it is mingled with regards that stand 



8 KING LEAR [Act I 

Aloof from the entire point. Will you have her? 
She is herself a dowry. 

Bur, Ro3ral Lear, 235 

Give but that portion which yourself proposed. 
And here I take Cordelia by the hand, 
Duchess of Burgundy. 

Lear, Nothing: I have sworn; I am firm. 

Bur, I am sorry, then, you have so lost a father 340 
That you must lose a husband. 

Cor, Peace be with Burgundy! 

Since that respects of fortune are his love, 
I shall not be his wife. 

France, Fairest Cordelia, that art most rich, being poor; 
Most choice, forsaken; and most loved, despised 1 245 

Thee and thy virtues here I seize upon: 
Be it lawful I take up what 's cast away. 
Gods, gods! *tis strange that from their cold'st neglect 
My love should kindle to inflamed respect. 
Thy doweriess daughter, king, thrown to my chance, 250 
Is queen of us, of ours, and our fair France : 
Not all the dukes of waterish Burgundy 
Can buy this unprized precious maid of me. 
Bid them farewell, Cordelia, though unkind: 
Thou losest here, a better where to find. 255 

Lear, Thou hast her, France: let her be thine; for we 
Have no such daughter, nor shall ever see 
That face of hers again. Therefore be gone 
Without our grace, our love, our benison. 
Come, noble Burgundy. 260 

{Flourish, Exeunt all but France ^ 
Goneril, Regan^ and Cordelia 

France, Bid farewell to your sisters. 

Cor, The jewels of our father, with wash'd eyes 
Cordelia leaves you: I. know you what you are; 
And like a sister am most loath to call 
Your faults as th^ are named. Use well our father: 265 
To your professed bosoms I commit him: 
But yet, alas, stood I within his grace, 
I would prefer him to a better place. 
So, farewell to you both. 



Scene 2] KING LEAR 9 

Reg. Prescribe not us our duties. 

dm. Let your study 370 

Be to content your lord, who hath received you 
At fortune's alms. You have obedience scanted, 
And well are worth the want that you have wanted. 

Cor, Time shall unfold what plaited cunning hides: 
Who cover faults, at last shame them derides. 275 

Well may you prosper! 

France, Come, my fair Cordelia. 

[Exeunt France and Cordelia 

Gon, Sister, it is not a little I have to say of what most 
nearly appertains to us both. I think our father will 
hence to-night. 

Reg, That's most certain, and with you; next month 
with us. 281 

Gon, You see how fiill of changes his age is; the 
observation we have made of it hath not been little: he 
always loved our sister most; and with what poor judge- 
ment he hath now cast her off appears too grossly. 285 

Reg, 'Tis the infirmity of his age: yet he hath ever but 
slenderly known himself. 

Gon, The best and soundest of his time hath been but 
rash; then must we look to receive from his age, not 
alone the imperfections of long-engraffed condition, but 
therewithal the unruly wa3rwardness that infirm and 
choleric years bring with them. 292 

Reg, Such unconstant starts are we like to have from 
him as this of Kent's banishment 

Gon, There is further compliment of leave-taking b^ 
tween France and him. Pray you, let's hit together: if 
our father carry authority with such dispositions as he 
bears, this last surrender of his will but offend us. 

Reg, We shall further think on 't. 299 

Gon, We must do something, and i' the heat. [Exeunt 

Scene IL The Earl of Gloucestet^s castle 

Enter Edmund, with a letter 

Edm, Thou, nature, art my goddess; to thy law 
My services are bound. Wherefore should I 



lo KING LEAR [Act 1 

Stand in the plague of custom, and permit 

The curiosity of nations to deprive me, 

For that I am some twelve or fourteen moonshines 5 

Lag of a brother? Why bastard? wherefore base? 

When my dimensions are as well compact, 

My mind as generous, and my shape as true. 

As honest madam's issue? Why brand they us 

With base? with baseness? bastardy? base, base? 10 

Legitimate Edgar, I must have your land: 

Our father's love is to the bastard Edmund 

As to the legitimate: fine word, 'legitimate'! 

Well, my legitimate, if this letter speed. 

And my invention thrive, Edmund the base 15 

Shall top the legitimate. I grow; I prosper: 

Now, gods, stand up for bastards! 

Enter Gloucester 

Ghu. Kent banish'd thus! and France in choler partedl 
And the king gone to-night! subscribed his power! 
Confined to exhibition! All this done 20 

Upon the gad! Edmund, how now! what news? 

Edm» So please your lordship, none. 

[PutHng- up the letter 

Glou. Why so earnestly seek you to put up that letter? 

Edm, I know no news, my lord. 

Glou. What paper were you reading? 25 

Edm, Nothing, my lord. 

Glou, No? What needed, then, that terrible dispatch 
of it into your pocket? the quality of nothing hath not 
such need to hide itself. Let 's see: come, if it be nothing*, 
I shall not need spectacles. 30 

Edm. I beseech you, sir, pardon me: it is a letter from 
my brother, that I have not all o'er-read; and for so much 
as I have perused, I find it not fit for your o'er-looking. 

Glou. Give me the letter, sir. 34 

Edm. I shall offend, either to detain or give it. The 
contents, as in part I understand them, are to blame. 

Glou. Let 's see, let 's see. 

Edm. I hope, for my brother's justification, he wrote 
this but as an essay or taste of my virtue. 39 



Scene 2] KING LEAR ii 

Glou, [Reads] * This policy and reverence of age makes 
the world bitter to the best of our times; keeps our for- 
tunes from us till our oldness cannot relish them. I b^^ 
to find an idle and fond bondage in the oppression of aged 
tyranny; who sways, not as it hath power, but as it is 
suffered. Come to me, that of this I may speak more. 
If our father would sleep till I waked him, you should 
enjoy half his revenue for ever, and live the beloved of 
your brother, Edgar.* 48 

Hum— conspiracy! — * Sleep till I waked him, — ^you should 
enjoy half his revenue,' — My son Edgar! Had he a hand 
to write this? a heart and brain to breed it in? — When 
came this to you? who brought it? 

Edm. It was not brought me, my lord; there's the 
cunning of it ; I found it thrown in at the casement of my 
closet 55 

Glou, You know the character to be your brother's? 

Edm. If the matter were good, my lord, I durst swear it 
were his; but, in respect of that, I would fain think it 
were not. 

Glou. It is his. 60 

Edm. It is his hand, my lord; but I hope his heart is 
not in the contents. 

Glou. Hath he never heretofore sounded you in this 
business? 64 

Edm. Never, my lord : but I have heard him oft main- 
tain it to be fit, that, sons at perfect age, and fathers 
declining, the father should be as ward to the son, and the 
son manage his revenue. 

Glou. O villain, villain! His very opinion in the letter! 
Abhorred villain! Unnatural, detested, brutish villain! 
worse than brudsh! Go, sirrah, seek him; 111 apprehend 
him: abominable villain ! Where is he? 72 

Edm. 1 do not well know, my lord. If it shall please 
you to suspend your indignation against my brother till 
you can derive from him better testimony of his intent, 
you shall run a certain course; where, if you violently pro- 
ceed against him, mistaking his purpose, it would make 
a great gap in your own honour, and shake in pieces the 
beart of his obedience. I dare pawn down my life for him, 



la KING LEAR [Act I 

Uiat he hath wrote this to feel my affection to your honour, 
and to no further pretence of danger. 8i 

Glau, Think you so? 

Edm. If your honour judge it meet, I will place you 
where you shall hear us confer of this, and by an auricular 
assurance have your satisfaction; and that without any 
further delay than this very evening. 86 

Glou, He cannot be such a monster — 

Edm, Nor is not, sure. 

GJau. To his father, that so tenderly and entirely loves 
him. Heaven and earth! Edmund, seek him out; wind 
me into him, I pray you: frame the business after your 
own wisdom. I would unstate myself, to be in a due 
resolution. 

Edm, I will seek him, sir, presently; convey the busi- 
ness as I shall find means, and acquaint you withal. 95 

Glau. These late eclipses in the sun and moon portend 
no good to us : though the wisdom of nature can reason 
it thus and thus, yet nature finds itself scourged by the 
sequent effects: love cools, fiiendship falls off, brothers 
divide: in cities, mutinies; in countries, discord; in palaces, 
treason; and the bond cracked 'twixt son and father. This 
villain of mine comes under the prediction; there's son 
against father: the king falls from bias of natiu-e; there 's 
father against child. We have seen the best of our time : 
machinations, hollowness, treachery, and all ruinous dis- 
orders, follow us disquietly to our graves. Find out this 
villain, Edmund; it shall lose thee nothing; do it care- 
fully. And the noble and true-hearted Kent banished I his 
offence, honesty ! 'T is strange. [ExU 109 

Edm, This is the excellent foppery of the world, that, 
when we are sick in fortune, — often the surfeit of our 
own behaviour, — we make guilty of our disasters the sun, 
the moon, and the stars : as if we were villains by neces- 
sity; fools by heavenly compulsion; knaves, thieves, and 
treachers, by sphericsd predominance; drunkards, liars, 
and adulterers, by an enforced obedience of planetary 
influence; and all that we are evil in, by a divine thrust- 
ing on : an admirable evasion of man, to lay his goatish 
dispo^tion to the charge of a atari Edgar — 119 



Scene 2] KING LEAR 13 

Enter Edgar 

and pat he comes like the catastrophe of the old comedy : 
my cue is villanous melancholy, with a sigh like Tom 
o' Bedlam. O, these eclipses do portend these divisions! 
£ci, sol, la, mi. 

Edg, How now, brother Edmund! what serious con- 
templation are you in? 125 

Edm, I am thinking, brother, of a prediction I read 
this other day, what should follow these eclipses. 

Edg, Do you busy yourself about that? 128 

Edm, I promise you, the effects he writes of succeed 
unhappily; as of unnaturalness between the child and 
• the parent ; death, dearth, dissolutions of ancient amities ; 
divisions in state, menaces and maledictions against king 
and nobles; needless diffidences, banishment of friends, 
dissipation of cohorts, nuptial breaches, and I know not 
what 135 

Edg, How long have you been a sectary astronomical? 

Edm. Come, come; when saw you my £&ther last? ■ 

Edg, Why, the night gone by. 

Edm, Spake you with him? 

Edg. Ay, two hours together. 140 

Edm, Parted you in good terms? Found you no dis- 
pleasure in him by word or countenance? 

Edg, None at all. 

Edm, Bethink yourself wherein you may have offended 
him: and at my entreaty forbear his presence till some 
little time hath qualified the heat of his displeasure ; which 
at this instant so rageth in him, that with the mischief 
of your person it would scarcely allay. 

Edg, Some villain hath done me wrong. 149 

Edm, That's my fear. I pray you, have a continent 
forbearance till the speed of his rage goes slower; and, 
as I say, retire with me to my lodging, from whence I will 
fitly bring you to hear my lord speak : pray ye, go ; there *s 
my key : if you do stir abroad, go armed. 

Edg, Armed, brother! 155 

Edm, Brother, I advise you to the best; go armed: I 
am no honest man if there be any good meaning towards 



14 KING LEAR [Act I 

you: I have told you what I have seen and heard; but 
faintly, nothing like the image and horror ot it : pray you, 
away. i6o 

Edg, Shall I hear from you anon? 

Edin, I do serve you in this business. \ExU Edgar 

A credulous father I and a brother noble, 
Whose nature b so far from doing harms. 
That he suspects none : on whose foolish honesty 165 

My practices ride easy I I see the business. 
Let me, if not by birth, have lands by wit : 
All with me 's meet that I can fashion fit. \ExU 

Scene IIL The Duke of Alhanfs palau 
Enter Goneril, and Oswald, hef steward 

Gon, Did my father strike my gentleman for chiding 
of his fool? 

Osw, Yes, madam. 

Gon. By dSsiy and night he wrongs me ; every hour 
He flashes into one gross crime or other. 
That sets us all at odds : I '11 not endure it : 5 

His knights grow riotous, and himself upbraids us 
On every trifle. When he returns from hunting, 
I will not speak with him ; say I am sick: 
If you come slack of former services. 
You shall do well ; the fault of it I '11 answer. 10 

Osw. He 's coming, madam ; I hear him. 

[Horns within 

Gon, Put on what weary negligence you please. 
You and your fellows ; I Id have it come to question : 
If he distaste it, let him to our sister. 
Whose mind and mine, I know, in that are one 15 

Not to be over-ruled. Idle old man. 
That still would manage those authorities 
That he hath given away I Now, by my life, 
Old fools are babes again, and must be used 
With checks as flatteries, when they are seen abused, ao 
Remember what I tell you. 

Osw. Well, madam. 



Scene 4] KING LEAR 15 

Gon, And let his knights have colder looks among you ; 
What grows of it, no matter; advise your fellows so: 
I would breed from hence occasions, and I shall, 
That I may speak : 1 11 write straight to my sister, 25 

To hold my very course. Prepare for dinner. [Exeunt 

Scene IV. A hall in the same 
Enter Kent, disguised 

Kent If but as well I other accents borrow, 
That can my speech defuse, my good intent 
May carry through itself to that full issue 
For which I razed my likeness. Now, banish'd Kent, 
If thou canst serve where thou dost stand condemn'd, 5 
So may it come, thy master, whom thou lovest, 
Shall find thee full ot labours. 

Horns within Enter Lear, Knights, and Attendants 

Lear, Let me not stay a jot for dinner; gCKget it ready. 
[Exit an Attendant,"] How now I what art thou? 

Kent, A man, sir. 10 

Lear, What dost thou profess? what wouldst thou with 
us? 

Kent, I do profess to be no less than I seem ; to serve 
him truly that will put me in trust: to love him that is 
honest ; to converse with him that is wise, and says little ; 
to fear judgment ; to fight when I cannot choose ; and to 
eat no fish. 17 

Lear, What art thou? 

KefU, A very honest-hearted fellow, and as poor as the 
king. 20 

Lear, If thou be as poor for a subject as he is for a king, 
thou art poor enough. What wouldst thou? 

Kent, Service. 

Lear, Who wouldst thou serve? 

Kent, You. 25 

Lear, Dost thou know me, fellow? 

Kent, No, sir; but you have that in your countenance 
which I would fain call master. 



i6 KING LEAR [Act I 

Lear, What's that? 

Kent. Authority. 30 

Lear, What services canst thou do? 

Kent I can keep honest counsel, ride, run, mar a 
curious tale in telling it, and deliver a plain message 
bluntly: that which ordinary men are fit for, I am qualified 
in ; and the best of me is diligence. 35 

Lear, How old art thou ? 

Kent, Not so young, sir, to love a woman for singing, 
nor so old to dote on her for anything : I have years on 
my back forty-eight. 39 

Lear, Follow me ; thou shalt serve me : if I like thee 
no worse after dinner, I will not part fix>m thee yet. 
Dinner, ho, dinner I Where's my knave? my fool? Go 
you, and call my fool hither. \Exit an Attendant 

Enter Oswald 

You, you, sirrah, where 's my daughter? 

Osw, So please you, — \Exit 45 

Lear, What says the fellow there? Call the clotpoll 

back. \ExU a Knight,\ Where's my fool, ho? I think 

the world 's asleep. 

Re-enter Knight 

How now! Where's that mongrel? 49 

Knight, He says, my lord, your daughter is not well. 
Lear, Why came not the slave back to me when I called 
him? 

Knight, Sir, he answered me in the roundest manner, 

he would not. 

Lear, He would not! 55 

Knight, My lord, I know not what the matter is ; but, 

to my judgement, your highness is not entertained with 

that ceremonious affection as you were wont; there's a 

great abatement of kindness appears as well in the general 

dependants as in the duke himself also and your daughter. 

Lear, Ha! sayest thou so? 61 

Knight. I beseech you, pardon me, my lord, it I be 

mistaken; for my duty cannot be silent when I think your 

highness wronged. 64 



8<$ene4] KING LEAR 17 

Lear, Thou but rememberest me of mine own concep- 
tion : I have perceived a most faint neglect of late ; which 
I have rather blamed as mine own jealous curiosity than 
as a very pretence and purpose of unkindness : I will look 
further into 't. But where 's my Tool? I have not seen him 
this two da3rs. 70 

Knight Since my young lady's going into France, sir, 
the fool hath much pined away. 

Lear, No more of that ; I have noted it well. Gro jrou, 
and tell my daughter I would speak with her. \Exit an 
attendant,] Go you, call hither my fool. 75 

[Exit an A ttendant 

Re-enter Oswald 

O, you sir, you, come you hither, sir: who am I, sir? 

Osw, My lady's father. 

Lear, *My lady's father* I my lord's knave: you dog! 
you slave \ you cur I 

Osw. I am none of these, my lord; I beseech your 
pardon. 81 

Lear, Do you bandy looks with me, you rascal? • 

[Striking him 

Osw, 1 11 not be struck, my lord. 

Kent, Nor tripped neither, you base foot-ball player. 

[Tripping up his heels 

Lear, I thank thee, fellow; thou servest me, and I'll 
love thee. 86 

Kent, Come, sir, arise, away! 1 11 teach you differences: 
away, away! If you will measure your lubber's length 
again, tarry: but away! go to; have you wisdom? so. 

[Pushes Oswald out 

Lear, Now, my friendly knave, I thank thee: there's 
earnest of thy service. [Giving Kent money 91 

Enter Fool 

Fool, Let me hire him too: here 's my coxcomb. 

[Offering Kent his cap 
Lear, How now, my pretty knave I how dost thou? 
Fool, Sirrah, you were best take my coxcomb. 
Kent. Why, fool? 95 



i8 KING LEAR [Act I 

Fooh Why, for taking one's part that 's out of favour : 
nay, an thou canst not smile as the wind sits, thou It catch 
cold shortly: there, take my coxcomb: why, this fellow 
has banished two on's daughters, and did the third a 
blessing against his will : if thou follow him, thou must 
needs wear my coxcomb. How now, nunclel Would I 
had two coxcombs and two daughters ! 102 

Lear, Why, my boy? 

Fool, If I gave them all my living, I Id keep my cox- 
combs myself. There's mine; beg another of thy daughters. 
Lear, Take heed, sirrah; the whip. 106 

Fool, Truth 's a dog must to kennel; he must be whipped 
out, when Lady the brach may stand by the fire and stink. 
Lear, A pestilent gall to me ! 

Fool, Sirrah, I '11 teach thee a speech. no 

Lear, Do. 
Fool, Mark it, nuncle : 

Have more than thou showest, 
Speak less than thou knowest, 
Lend less than thou owest, 1 15 

Ride more than thou goest, 
Learn more than thou trowest, 
Set less than thou throwest; 
And thou shalt have more 
Than two tens to a score. 120 

Kent, This is nothing, fool. 

Fool, Then 'tis like the breath of an unfee'd lain'yer; 

you gave me nothing for't. Can you make no use of 

nothing, nuncle? 124 

Lear, Why, no, boy; nothing can be made out of nothing. 

Fool, [To Kent\ Prithee, tell him, so much the rent of 

his land comes to: he will not believe a fool. 

Lear, A bitter fool ! 

Fool, Dost thou know the difference, my boy, between 
a bitter fool and a sweet fool? 130 

Lear, No, lad; teach me. 
FooL That lord that counsell'd thee 

To give away thy land. 
Come place him here by me, 
Do thou for him stand: 35 



Scene 4] KING LEAR 19 

The sweet and bitter fool 

Will presently appear; 
The one in motley here, 

The other found out there. 

Lear, Dost thou call me fool, boy? 140 

FooL All thy other titles thou hast given away; that 
thou wast bom with. 

Kent, This is not altogether fool, my lord. 

FooL No, feith, lords and great men will not let me; if 
I had a monopoly out, they would have part on't: and 
ladies too, they will not let me have all fool to myself; 
they'll be snatching. Give me an e%^^ nuncle, and 1 11 
give thee two crowns. 148 

Lear. What two crowns shall they be? 

FooL Why, after I have cut the ^%^ i' the middle, and 
eat up the meat, the two crowns of the ^%^* When thou 
clovest thy crown i' the middle, and gavest away both 
parts, thou borest thy ass on thy back o'er the dirt: thou 
hadst little wit in thy bald crown, when thou gavest thy 
golden one away. If I speak like myself in this, let him 
be whipped that first finds it so. 156 

\Sing%ng[ Fools had ne'er less wit in a year; 
For wise men are grown foppish. 
They know not how their wits to wear, 
Their manners are so apish. 160 

Lear, When were you wont to be so full of songs, sirrah? 

FooL I have used it, nuncle, ever since thou madest 
thy daughters thy mother: for when thou gavest them the 
rod, and puttest down thine own breeches, 

\Singing[ Then they for sudden joy did weep, 165 

And I for sorrow sung. 
That such a king should play bo-peep. 
And go the fools among. 

Prithee, nuncle, keep a schoolmaster that can teach thy 
fool to lie: I would fain learn to lie. 170 

Lear, An you lie, sirrah, we 11 have you whipped. 

FooL I marvel what kin thou and thy daughters are: 
they 11 have me whipped for speaking true, thou It have 



20 KING LEAR [Act I 

me whipped for l3ring; and sometimes I am whipped for 
holding my peace. I had rather be any kind o' thing than 
a fool: and yet I would not be thee, nuncle; thou hast 
pared thy wit o' both sides, and left nothing i' the middle: 
here comes one o' the parings. 178 

Enter Gonbril 

Lear, How now, daughter! what makes that frontlet 
on? Methinks you are too much of late i' the frown. 

Fool. Thou wast a pretty fellow when thou hadst no 
need to care for her frowning; now thou art an O without 
a figure: I am better than thou art now; I am a fool» 
thou art nothing. [To Gon,] Yes, forsooth, I will hold 
my tongue; so your face bids me, though you say nothing. 
Mum, mum, 186 

He that keeps nor crust nor crum, 
Weary of all, shall want some. 

[Pointing' to Lear] That 's a shealed peascod. 

Gon, Not only, sir, this your all-licensed fool, 190 

But other of your insolent retinue 
Do hourly carp and quarrel; breaking forth 
In rank and not-to-be-eridured riots. Sir, 
I had thought, by making this well known unto you, 
To have found a safe redress; but now grow fearful, 195 
By what yourself too late have spoke and done, 
That you protect this course, and put it on 
By your allowance; which if you should, the fault 
Would not 'scape censure, nor the redresses sleep, 
Which, in the tender of a wholesome weal, 200 

Might in their working do you that offence, 
Which else were shame, that then necessity 
Will call discreet proceeding. 

Fool. For, you know, nuncle, 

The hedge-sparrow fed the cuckoo so long, 205 
That it had it head bit off by it young. 

So, out went the candle, and we were left darkling. 
Lean Are you our daughter? 
Gon. Come, sir. 



Scene 4] KING LEAR ai 

I would you would make use of that good wisdom, 210 
Whereof I know you are fraught, and put away 
These dispositions that of late transform you 
From what you rightly are. 

Fool, May not an ass know when the cart draws the 
horse? Whoop, Jug! I love thee. 215 

Lean Doth any here know me? This is not Lear: 
Doth Lear walk thus? speak thus? Where are his eyes? 
Either his notion weakens, his discemings 
Are lethargied — Ha ! waking? 't is not so. 
Who is it that can tell me who I am? 220 

FooL Lear's shadow. 

Lear. I would learn that; for, by the marks of sove- 
reignty, knowledge, and reason, I should be £dse persuaded 
I had daughters. 

FooL Which they will make an obedient ^ther. 225 

Lear. Your name, fair gentlewoman? 

Gon. This admiration, sir, is much o' the savour 
Of other your new pranks. I do beseech you 
To understand my purposes aright: 

As you are old and reverend, you should be wise. 230 

Here do you keep a hundred knights and squires; 
Men so ^order'd, so debosh'd and bold. 
That this our court, infected with their manners, 
Shows like a riotous inn: epicurism and lust 
Make it more like a tavern or a brothel 235 

Than a graced palace. The shame itself doth speak 
For instant remedy: be then desired 
By her, that else will take the thing she begs, 
A little to disquantity your train; 

And the remainder Uiat shall still depend, 240 

To be such men as may besort your age. 
And know themselves and you. 

Lear. Darkness and devils I 

Saddle my horses; call my trsun together. 
Degenerate bastard ! 1 11 not trouble thee: 
Yet have I left a daughter. 245 

Gon. You strike my people, and your disorder'd rabble 
Make servants of their betters. 

(M906) B 



aa KING LEAR [Act I 

Enter Albany 

Lear. Woe, that too late repents, — [To Alb,"] O, sir, are 
you come? 
Is it your will? Speak, sir. Prepare my horses. 
Ingratitude, thou marble-hearted fiend, 250 

More hideous when thou show'st thee in a child 
Than the sea-monster! 

Alb. Pray, sir, be patient. 

Lear, [To Gon.\ Detested kite I thou liest: 
My train are men of choice and rarest parts. 
That all particulars of duty know, 255 

And in the most exact regard support 
The worships of their name. O most small fault. 
How ugly didst thou in Cordelia show I 
That, like an engine, wrench'd my frame of nature 
From the fix'd place; drew from my heart all love, 260 
And added to the gall. O Lear, Lear, Lear I 
Beat at this gate, that let thy folly in, [Striking hts head 
And thy dear judgement out I Go, go, my people. 

Alb, My lord, I am guiltless, as I am ignorant 
Of what hath moved you. 

Lear, It may be so, my lord. 265 

Hear, nature, hear; dear goddess, hear! 
Suspend thy purpose, if thou didst intend 
To make this creature fruitful ! 
Into her womb convey sterility I 

Dry up in her the organs of increase, 270 

And from her derogate body never spring 
A babe to honour her I If she must teem. 
Create her child of spleen; that it may live 
And be a thwart disnatured torment to her I 
Let it stamp wrinkles in her brow of youth; 275 

With cadent tears fret channels in her cheeks; 
Turn all her mother's pains and benefits 
To laughter and contempt; that she may feel 
How sharper than a serpent's tooth it is 
To have a thankless child I Away, away! [Exit 280 

Alb, Now, gods that we adore, whereof comes this? 

Gon, Never afHict yourself to know the cause; 



Scene 4] KING LEAR 23 

But let his disposition have that scope 
That dotage gives it. 

Re'-enter Lear 

Lear, What, fifty of my followers at a clap ! 285 

Within a fortnight I 
Alb. What *s the matter, sir? 

Lear. Ill tell thee: \To Gim.\ Life and death! I am 
ashamed 
That thou hast power to shake my manhood thus; 
That these hot tears, which break from me perforce, 289 
Should make thee worth them. Blasts and fogs upon thee! 
The untented woundings of a father's curse 
Pierce every sense about thee I Old fond eyes, 
Beweep this cause again, I '11 pluck ye out. 
And cast you, with the waters that you lose, 
To temper clay. Yea, is it come to this? 295 

Let it be so: yet have I left a daughter. 
Who, I am sure, is kind and comfortable: 
When she shall hear this of thee, with her nails 
She 11 flay thy wolvish visage. Thou shalt find 
That 1 11 resume the shape which thou dost think 300 

I have cast off for ever: thou shalt, I warrant thee. 

[Exeunt Lear, Kent, and Attendants 
Gon, Do you mark that, my lord? 
Alb, I cannot be so partial, Goneril, 
To the great love I bear you, — 

Gan, Pray you, content. Whati Oswald, ho ! 305 

[To the Fool\ You, sir, more knave than fool, after your 
master. 
Fool. Nuncle Lear, nuncle Lear, tarry and take the fool 
with thee. 

A fox, when one has caught her. 

And such a daughter, 310 

Should sure to the slaughter. 

If my cap would buy a halter: 

So the fool follows after. [Exit 

Gon. This man hath had good counsel. A hundred 
knights ! 



34 KING LEAR [Act I 

Tis politic and safe to let him keep 315 

At point a hundred knights: yes, diat on every dream, 
Each buzz, each fancy, each complaint, dislike, 
He may enguard his dotage with their powers, 
And hold our lives in mercy. Oswald, I say I 

Alb. Well, you may fear too far. 

G<m. Safer than trust too far: 

Let me still take away the harms I fear, 321 

Not fear still to be taken: I know his heart 
What he hath utter'd I have writ my sister: 
If she sustain him and his hundred knights, 
When I have show'd the unfitness, — 

Re-enter Oswald 

How now, Oswald ! 
What, have you writ that letter to my sister? 326 

Osw. Yes, madam. 

Gon. Take you some company, and away to horse : 
Inform her full of my particular fear; 
And thereto add such reasons of your own 330 

As may compact it more. Get you gone ; 
And hasten your return. {Exit Oswald,"] No, no, my 

lord, 
This milky gentleness and course of yours 
Though I condemn not, yet, under pardon. 
You are much more attask'd for want of wisdom 335 

Than praised for harmful mildness. 

Alb. How for your eyes may pierce I cannot tell : 
Striving to better, oft we mar what 's well. 

Gon, Nay, then — 

Alb. Well, well ; the event. [Exeunt 340 

ScENB V. Court before the same 
Enter Lear, Kent, and Fool 

Lear. Go you before to Gloucester with these letters. 
Acquaint my daughter no further with any thing you 
know than comes from her demand out of the letter. 
If your diligence be not speedy, I ^all be there afore 
you. 5 



Scenes] KING LEAR 25 

Kent I will not sleep, my lord, till I have delivered 
your letter. \ExU 

Fool, If a man's brains were in 's heels, were 't not in 
dat^er of kibes? 

Lear, Ay, boy. 10 

Fool, Then, I prithee, be merry; thy wit shall ne*er go 
slip-shod. 

Lear, Ha, ha, ha! 

Fool, Shalt see thy other daughter will use thee kindly; 
for though she 's as like this as a crab 's like an apple, yet 
I can tell what I can tell. 16 

Lear, Why, what canst thou tell, my boy? 

Fool, She will taste as like this as a crab does to a crab. 
Thou canst tell why one's nose stands i' the middle on 's 
face? 20 

Lear, No. 

Fool, Why, to keep one's eyes of either side's nose; 
that what a man cannot smell out, he may spy into. 

Lear, I did her wrong — 

Fool, Canst tell how an oyster makes his shell? 25 

Lear, No. 

Fool, Nor I neither; but I can tell why a snsul has a 
house. 

Lear, Why? 

Fool, Why, to put's head in; not to give it away to 
his daughters, and leave his horns without a case. 31 

Lear, I will forget my nature. So kind a fotherl Be 
my horses ready? 

Fool, Thy asses are gone about 'em. The reason why 
the seven stars are no more than seven is a pretty reason. 

Lear, Because they are not eight? 36 

Fool, Yes, indeed : thou wouldst make a good fool. 

Lear, To take 't again perforce ! Monster ingratitude I 

Fool, If thou wert my fool, nuncle, I Id have thee beaten 
for being old before thy time. 40 

Lear, How's that? 

Fool, Thou shouldst not have been old till thou hadst 
been wise. 

Lear, O, let me not be mad, not mad, sweet heaven \ 
Keep me in temper : I would not be mad I 45 



26 KING LEAR [Act II 

Enter Grentleman 

How now! are the horses ready? 
Gent Ready, my lord. 
Lear. Come, boy. [Exeunt 



ACT II 

ScBNB I. The Eati of Gloucester's castle 

Enter Edmund, and Curan meets him 

Edm. Save thee, Curan. 

Cur. And you, sir. I have been with your &ther, and 
g^ven him notice that the Duke of Cornwall and Regan 
his duchess will be here with him this night. 

Edm. How comes that? 5 

Cur. Nay, I know not. You have heard of the news 
abroad ; I mean the whispered ones, for they are yet but 
ear-kissing arguments? 

Edm. Not I : pray you, what are they? 

Cur. Have you heard of no likely wars toward, 'twixt 
the Dukes of Cornwall and Albany? 1 1 

Edm. Not a word. 

Cur. You may do, then, in time. Fare you well, sir. 

\Exu 

Edm. The duke be here to-night? The better I best I 
This weaves itself perforce into my business. 15 

My father hath set guard to take my brother; 
And I have one thing, of a queasy question. 
Which I must act: briefness and fortune, work! 
Brother, a word ; descend : brother, I say ! 

Enter Edgar 

My father watches : O sir, fly this place; 20 

Intelligence is given where you are hid ; 

You have now the good advantage of the night : 

Have you not spoken 'gainst the Duke of Cornwall? 

He's coming hither; now, i' the night, i' the haste, 



Scene z] KING LEAR t^ 

And Regan with him : have you nothing said 25 

Upon his party *gainst the Duke of Albany? 
Advise yourself. 
Edg. I am sure on 't, not a word, 

Edm, I hear my father coming: pardon me; 
In cunning I must draw my sword upon you : 
Draw; seem to defend yourself; now quit you well. 30 
Yield : come before my father. Light, ho, here I 
Fly, brother. Torches, torches! So, farewell. 

[Exit Edgar 
Some blood drawn on me would b^et opinion 

[ Wounds his arm 
Of my more fierce endeavour : I have seen drunkards 
Do more than this in sport Father, father! 35 

Stop, stop! No help? 

Enter Gloucester, and Servants wi^ torches 

Glou. Now, Edmund, where 's the villain? 

Edm, Here stood he in the dark, his sharp sword out, 
Mumbling of wicked charms, conjuring the moon 
To stand auspicious mistress, — 

Ghu, But where is he? 40 

Edm, Look, sir, I bleed. 

Glou, Where is the villain, Edmund? 

Edm, Fled this way, sir. When by no means he could — 

Ghu, Pursue him, ho! Go after. \Exeunt same Ser- 
vants, \ By no means what? 

Edm, Persuade me to the murder of your lordship; 
But that I told him the revenging gods 45 

'Gainst parricides did all their thunders bend, 
Spoke with how manifold and strong a bond 
Tlie child was bound to the father; sir, in fine, 
Seeing how loathly opposite I stood 

To his unnatural purpose, in fell motion, 50 

With his prepared sword, he charges home 
My unprovided body, lanced mine arm : 
But when he saw my best alarum'd spirits. 
Bold in the quarrel's right, roused to the encounter, 
Or whether gasted by die noise I made, 55 

Full suddenly he fled. 



a8 KING LEAR [Act II 

Gloti, Let htm fly far : 

Not in this land shall he remain uncaught ; 
And found — dispatch. The noble duke my mast^. 
My worthy arch and patron, comes to*night : 
By his authority I will proclaim it, 60 

Tliat he which finds him shall deserve our thanks. 
Bringing the murderous cowsu'd to the stake ; 
He that conceals him, death. 

Edm, When I dissuaded him from his intent. 
And found him pight to do it, with curst speech 65 

I threaten'd to discover him : he replied, 
' Thou unpossessing bastard I dost thou think, 
If I would stand against thee, would the reposal 
Of any trust, virtue, or worth in thee 
Make thy words faith'd? No : what I should deny, — 70 
As this I would ; ay, though thou didst produce 
My very character, — I 'Id turn it all 
To thy suggestion, plot, and damn'd practice : 
And thou must make a dullard of the world, 
If they not thought the profits of my death 75 

Were very pregnant and potential spurs 
To make thee seek it.' 

Glou, Strong and fasten'd villain ! 

Would he deny his letter? I never got him. [Tucket wUkin 
Hark, the duke's trumpets ! I know not why he comes. 
All ports 1 11 bar; the villain shall not 'scape; 80 

The duke must grant me that : besides, his picture 
I will send far and near, that all the kingdom 
May have due note of him ; and of my land. 
Loyal and natural boy, I '11 work the means 
To make thee capable. 85 

Enter Cornwall, Regan, and Attendants 

Com, How now, my noble friend I since I came hither, 
Which I can call but now, I have heard strange news. 

Reg: If it be true, all vengeance comes too short 
Which can pursue the offender. How dost, my lord? 

Glou. O, madam, my old heart is crack'd, is crack'd I 90 

Reg, What, did my father's godson seek your life? 
He whom mjr friend named? your Edgar? 



Scene x] KING LEAR 29 

Glau. O, lady, lady, shame would have it hid ! 

Re^. Was he not companion with the riotous knif^hts 
That tend upon my father? 95 

Glou. I know not, madam : 't is too bad, too bad. 

Edm, Yes, madam, he was of that consort. 

Re^, No marvel, then, thougfh he were ill affected : 
T is they have put him on the old man's death. 
To have the expense and waste of his revenues. 100 

I have this present evening from my sister 
Been well informed of them; and with such cautions. 
That if they come to sojourn at my house, 
1 11 not be there. 

Com, Nor I, assure thee, R^an. 

Edmund, I hear that you have shown your father 105 

A child-like office. 

Edm, Twas my duty, sir. 

Glou, He did bewray his practice ; and received 
This hurt you see, striving to apprehend him. 

Com, Is he pursued? 

Glou, Ay, my good lord. 

Corn, If he be taken, he shall never more no 

Be fear'd of doing harm: make your own purpose, 
How in my strength you please. For you, Edmund, 
Whose virtue and obedience doth this instant 
So much commend itself, you shall be ours : 
Natures of such deep trust we shall much need; 115 

You we first seize on. 

Edm, I shall serve you, sir. 

Truly, however else. 

Glou, For him I thank your grace. 

Com, You know not why we came to visit you, — 

Reg^, Thus out of season, threading dark-eyed night : 
Occasions, noble Gloucester, of some poise, 120 

Wherein we must have use of your advice: 
Our father he hath writ, so hath our sister, 
Of differences, which I least thought it fit 
To answer from our home; the several messengers 
From hence attend dispatch. Our good old friend, 125 
Lay comforts to your bosom; and bestow 
Your needful counsel to our business. 



30 KING LEAR [Act II 

Which craves the instant use. 

Glou. I serve you, madam: 

Your graces are right welcome. {Exeunt 



ScBNB II. Before Glaucestet^s castie 
Enter Kent and Oswald, severally 

Osw, Good dawning to thee, friend: art of this house? 

Kent. Ay. 

Osw, Where may we set our horses? 

JCent V the mire. 

Osw, Prithee, if thou lovest me, tell me. $ 

Kent. 1 love thee not. 

Osw. Why, then, I care not for thee. 

Kent. If I had thee in Lipsbury pinfold, I would make 
thee care for me. 

Osw. Why dost thou use me thus? I know thee not 

Kent. Fellow, I know thee. 

Osw. What dost thou know me for? 12 

Kent. A knave; a rascal; an eater of broken meats; a 
base, proud, shallow, beggarly, three-suited, hundred- 
pound, filthy, worsted-stocking knave; a lily-livered, 
action-taking knave; a glass -gazing, super-serviceable, 
finical rogue; one-trunk- inheriting slave; one that art 
nothing but the composition of a knave, beggar, coward, 
pandar, and the son and heir of a mongrel bitch: one whom 
I will beat into clamorous whining, if thou deniest the 
least syllable of thy addition. 21 

Osw. Why, what a monstrous fellow art thou, thus to 
rail on one that is neither known of thee nor knows thee I 

Kent. What a brazen-faced varlet art thou, to deny thou 
knowest me I Is it two days ago since I tripped up thy 
heels, and beat thee before the king? Draw, you rogue : 
for, though it be night, yet the moon shines; 1 11 make a 
sop o* the moonshine of you: draw, you cuUionly barber- 
monger, draw. [Dfuwing^ his sword 

Osw. Away! I have nothing to do with thee. 30 

Kent Draw, jrou rascal : you come with letters against 
the king; and take vanity the puppet's part against the 



Scene a] KING LEAR 31 

royalty of her Neither: draw, you rogue, a* 111 so car- 
bonado your shanks: draw, you rascal; come your ways. 
Osw. Help, hoi murder! help! 35 

Kent, Strike, you slave; stand, rogue, stand; you neat 
slave, strike. [Beating him 

Osw. Help, hoi miuxlerl miuxlerl 



Entet Edmund, wUh his rapier drawn, Cornwall, 
Regan, Gloucester, and Servants 

Edm. How now! What 's the matter? 

Kent With you, goodman boy, an you please: come, 
1 11 flesh ye; come on, young master. 41 

Ghu. Weapons I arms I What *s the matter here? 

Com. Keep peace, upon your lives: 
He dies that strikes again. What is the matter? 

Reg, The messengers from our sisters and the king. 45 

Com, What is your difference? speak. 

Osw, I am scarce in breath, my lord. 

Kent No marvel, you have so bestirred your valour. 
You cowardly rascal, nature disclaims in thee: a tailor 
made thee. 50 

Com. Thou art a strange fellow: a tailor make a man? 

Kent Ay, a tailor, sir: a stone-cutter or a painter could 
not have made him so ill, though he had been but two 
hours at the trade. 

Com, Speak yet, how grew your quarrel? 55 

Osw. This ancient ruflian, sir, whose life I have spared 
at suit of his gray beard, — 

Kent, Thou zed! thou unnecessary letter! My lord, if 
you will give me leave, I will tread this unbolted vill^n 
into mortar, and daub the walls with him. Spare my gray 
beard, you wagtail? 61 

Com, Peace, sirrah! 
You beastly knave, know you no reverence? 

Kent, Yes, sir ; but anger hath a privilege. 

Com. Why art thou angry? 65 

Kent. That such a slave as this should wear a sword, 
Who wears no honesty. Such smiling rogues as these, 
like rats, oft bite the holy cords a-twain 



32 KING LEAR [Act 11 

Which are too intrinse t' unloose ; smooth every passion 

That in the natures of their lords rebel; 70 

Bring oil to fire, snow to their colder moods ; 

Renege, affirm, and turn their halcyon beaks 

With every gale and vary of their masters, 

Knowing nought, like dogs, but following. 

A plague upon your epileptic visage! 75 

Smile you my speeches, as I were a fool? 

Goose, if I had you upon Sarum plain, 

I 'Id drive ye cackling home to Camelot 

Com. What, art thou mad, old fellow? 

Gkm, How fell you out? say that 80 

Kent. No contraries hold more antipathy 
Than I and such a knave. 

Cam. Why dost thou call him knave? What's his 
offence? 

Kent His countenance likes me not. 

Com,. No more, perchance, does mine, nor his, nor hers. 

Kent. Sir, 't is my occupation to be plain: 86 

I have seen better faces in my time 
Than stands on any shoulder that I see 
Before me at this instant. 

Cam. This is some fellow. 

Who, having been praised for bluntness, doth aflect 90 
A saucy roughness, and constrains the garb 
Quite from his nature: he cannot flatter, he, 
An honest mind and plain, he must speak truth ! 
An they will take it, so ; if not, he 's plain. 
These kind of knaves I know, which in this plainness 95 
Harbour more craft and more corrupter ends 
Than twenty silly ducking observants 
That stretch their duties nicely. 

Kent. Sir, in good sooth, in sincere verity, 
Under the allowance of your great aspect, 100 

Whose influence, like the wreath of radiant fiire 
On flickering Phoebus' front, — 

Cam. What mean'st by this? 

Kent. To go out of my dialect, which you discommend 
so much. I know, sir, I am no flatterer: he that beguiled 
you in a plain accent was a plain knave; which for my 



Scene a] KING LEAR 33 

part I will not be, though I should win your cUspleasure 
to entreat me to 't. 107 

Com. What was the offence you gave him? 

Osw. I never gave him any: 
It pleased the king his master very late no 

To strike at me, upon his misconstruction; 
When he, conjunct, and flattering his displeasure^ 
Tripp'd me behind; being down, insulted, rail'd, 
And put upon him such a deal of man, 
That worthied him, got praises of the king 115 

For him attempting who was self-subdued; 
And, in the fleshment of this dread exploit. 
Drew on me here again. 

ITent None of these rogues and cowards 

But Ajax is their fool. 

Com. Fetch forth the stocks I 

You stubborn ancient knave, you reverent braggart, 120 
We 11 teach you — 

UTent Sir, I am too old to learn: 

Call not your stocks for me: I serve the king; 
On whose employment I was sent to you: 
You shall do small respect, show too bold malice 
Against the grace and person of my master, 125 

Stocking his messenger. 

Com. Fetch forth the stocks I As I have life and honour. 
There shall he sit till noon. 

i?^^. Till noon I till night, my lord; and all night toa 

ITent Why, madam, if I were your father's dog, 130 
You should not use me so. 

lieg'. Sir, being his knave, I will. 

Com. This is a fellow of the self-same colour 
Our sister speaks of. Come, bring away the stocks 1 

[Stocks brought out 

Glou. Let me beseech your grace not to do so: 
His fault is much, and the good king his master 135 

Win check him for *t: your purposed low correction 
Is such as basest and contemned'st wretches 
For pilferings and most common trespasses 
Are punish'd with: the king must take it ill. 
That he, so slightly valued in his messenger, 140 



34 KING LEAR [Act 11 

Should have him thus restrain'd. 

Com, 1 11 answer that. 

Reg-, My sister may receive it much more worse, 
To have her gentleman abused, assaulted, 
For following her affairs. Put in his legs. 

[Kent is put in the stocks 

Come, my good lord, away. 145 

[Exeunt all but Gloucester and Kent 

Glou. I am sorry for thee, friend ; 't is the duke's pleasure. 
Whose disposition, all the world well knows, 
Will not be rubb'd nor stopp'd : I '11 entreat for thee. 

Kent Pray, do not, sir: I have watched and travell'd 
hard; 
Some time I shall sleep out, 'the rest I '11 whistle. 150 

A good man's fortune may grow out at heels: 
Give you good morrow! 

Ghu, The duke 's to blame in this; 'twill be ill-taken. 

[Exit 

Kent Good king, that must approve the common saw. 
Thou out of heaven's benediction comest 155 

To the warm sun! 

Approach, thou beacon to this under globe, 
That by thy comfortable beams I may 
Peruse this letter I Nothing almost sees miracles 
But misery: I know 't is from Cordelia, 160 

Who hath most fortunately been inform'd 
Of my obscured course; and shall find time 
From this enormous state, seeking to give 
Losses their remedies. All weary and o'er-watch'd. 
Take vantage, heavy eyes, not to behold 165 

This shameful lodging. 
Fortune, good night: smile once more; turn thy wheel! 

[Sleeps 
ScENB III. A wood 

Enter Edgar 

Edg, I heard myself proclaim'd; 
And by the happy hollow of a tree 
Escaped the hunt No port is free; no place, 
That guard, and most unusual vigikuioe. 



Scene 4] KING LEAR 35 

Does not attend my taking. Whiles I may 'scape, 5 

I will preserve myself: and am bethought 

To take the basest and most poorest shape 

That ever penury, in contempt of man, 

Brought near to beast: my face 1 11 grime with filth; 

Blanket my loins; elf all my hair in knots; . 10 

And with presented nakedness out-face 

The winds and persecutions of the sky. 

The country g^ves me proof and precedent 

Of Bedlam beggars, who, with roaring voices. 

Strike in their numb'd and mortified bare arms 15 

Pins, wooden pricks, nails, sprigs of rosemary; 

And with this horrible object, fi-om low farms, 

Poor pelting villages, sheep-cotes, and mills. 

Sometime with lunatic bans, sometime with prayers. 

Enforce their charity. Poor TurlygodI poor Tom! 20 

That 's something yet: Edgar I nothing am. [Exi^ 

Scene IV. Before Gloucestet^s castle, Kent 
in the stocks 

Enter Lear, Fool, and Gentieman 

Lear. T is strange that they should so depart fix)m home. 
And not send back my messenger. 

Cfent. As I leam'd. 

The night before there was no purpose in them 
Of this remove. 

Kent, Hail to thee, noble master! 

Lear. Hal 5 

Makest thou this shame thy pastime? 

Kent. No, my lord. 

Fool. Ha, ha! he wears cruel garters. Horses are tied 
by the heads, dogs and bears by the neck, monkeys by the 
loins, and men by the legs : when a man 's over-lusty at 
legs, then he wears wooden nether-stocks. 10 

Lear. What's he that hath so much thy place mistook 
To set thee here? 

Kent. It is both he and she; 

Your son and daughter. 

Lear. No. 



36 KING LEAR [Act II 

Kent. Yes. 15 

Lear, No, l say. 

Kent, I say, yea. 

Lear, No, no, they would not 

Kent, Yes, they have. 

Lear, By Jupiter, I swear, no. ao 

Kent. By Juno, I swear, ay. 

Lear, They durst not do 't; 

They could not, would not do *t; 'tis worse than murder. 
To do upon respect such violent outrage: 
Resolve me, with all modest haste, which way 
Thou mightst deserve, or they impose, this usage, 25 

Coming from us. 

Kent, My lord, when at their home 

I did commend your highness' letters to them. 
Ere I was risen from the place that show'd 
My duty kneeling, came there a reeking post, 
Stew'd in his haste, half breathless, panting forth 30 

From Goneril his mistress salutations ; 
Delivered letters, spite of intermission, 
Which presently they read: on whose contents, 
They summon'd up their meiny, straight took horse; 
Commanded me to follow, and attend 35 

The leisure of their answer ; gave me cold looks : 
And meeting here the other messenger, 
Whose welcome, I perceived, had poison'd mine, — 
Being the very fellow that of late 

Displayed so saucily against your highness,—- 40 

Having more man than wit about me, drew: 
He raised the house with loud and coward cries. 
Your son and daughter found this trespass worth 
The shame which here it suffers. 

Fool. U^nter 's not gone yet, if the wild-geese fly that 
way. 46 

Fathers that wear rags 

Do make their children blind ; 
But fathers that bear bags 
Shall see their children kind. 50 

But, for all this, thou shalt have as many dolours for thy 
daughters as thou canst tell in a year. 



Scene 4] KING LEAR 37 

Lear, O, how this mother swells up toward my heart ! 
Hysterica passio, down, thou climbing sorrow, 
Thy element 's below I Where is this daughter? 55 

Kent, W^th the earl, sir, here within. 
Lear, Follow me not ; 

Stay here. \Exit 

Gent, Made you no more offence but what you speak of? 
Kent, None. 
How chance the king comes with so small a train? 60 

Fool, An thou hadst been set i* the stocks for that 
question, thou hadst well deserved it 
Kent, Why, fool? 63 

Fool, We *11 set thee to school to an ant, to teach thee 
there's no labouring i* the winter. All that follow their 
noses are led by their eyes but blind men ; and there 's not 
a nose among twenty but can smell him that 's stinking. 
Let go thy hold when a great wheel runs down a hill, lest 
it break thy neck with following it; but the great one 
that goes up the hill, let him draw thee after. When a 
wise man gives thee better counsel, g^ve me mine again : 
I would have none but knaves follow it, since a fool gives 
it 

That sir which serves and seeks for gain, 

And follows but for form, 75 

Will pack when it begins to rsdn, 

And leave thee in the storm. 
But I will tarry; the fool will stay, 

And let the wise man fly: 
The knave turns fool that runs away; So 

The fool no knave, perdy. 

Kent, Where learned you this, fool? 
Fool, Not i' the stocks, fool. 

Re-^nter Lear, with Gloucester 

Lear, Deny to speak with me? They are sick? they 
are weary? 
They have traveird all the night? Mere fetches; 85 

The images of revolt and flying off. 
Fetch me a better answer. 

(XOO6) B 



58 laNG LEAR [Act II 

Glou, My dear lord. 

You know the fiery quality of the duke; 
How unremoveable and fix'4 he is , 
In his own course. 90 

Lear. Vengeance! plague! death! confusion! 
Fiery? what quality? Why, Gloucester, Gloucester, 
I 'Id speak with the Duke of Cornwall and his wife. 

Glou, Well, my good lord, I have inform'd them so. 

Lear. Inform'd them ! Dost thou understand me, man? 

Glau. Ay, my good lord. 96 

Lear. TTie king would speak with Cornwall; the dear 
father 
Would with his daughter speak, commands her service: 
Are they inform'd of this? My breath and blood 1 
Fiery? the fiery duke? Tell the hot duke that— 100 

No, but not yet: may be he is not w^: 
Infirmity doth still neglect all office 
Whereto our health is bound; we are not ourselves 
When nature, being oppress'd, commands the mind 
To suffer with the body: I '11 forbear; 105 

And am fall'n out with my more headier will, 
To take the indisposed and sickly fit 
For the sound man. Death on my state 1 wherefore 

[Looking^ on Kent 
Should he sit here? This act persuades me 
That this remotion of the duke and her zio 

Is practice only. Give me my servant forth. 
Go tell the duke and 's wife I Id speak with them, 
Now, presently: bid them come forth and hear me, 
Or at their chamber-door I Tl beat the drum 
Till it cry sleep to death. 115 

Gkm. I would have all well betwixt you. [Exit 

Lear. O me, my heart, my rising heart ! but, down ! 

Fool. Cry to it, nuncle, as the cockney did to the eels 
when she put 'em i' the paste alive; she knapped 'em o* 
the coxcombs with a stick, and cried 'Down, wantons, 
down!' 'Twas her brother that, in pure kindness to his 
horse, buttered his hay. laa 



6ceiie4] KING LEAR 39 

Enter Cornwall, Regan, GLOUCESTEit, and Servants 

Lear. Good morrow to you both. 

Cam, Hail to your grmcel 

[KentissetatlAerfy 

Reg. I am glad to see your highness. 

Lear, Regan, I think you are ; I know what reason 125 
I have to think so: if thou shouldst not be glad, 
I would divorce me from thy mother's tomb, 
Sepulchring an adultress; [To Kent"] O, are 3rou free? 
Some other time for that. Beloved Regan, 
Thy sister's naught: O Regan, she hath tied 130 

Sharp-tooth'd unkindness, like a vulture, here: 

[Points to his heart 
I can scarce speak to thee; thou It not believe 
W^th how depraved a quality — O Regan! 

Reg. I pray you, sir, take patience: I have hope 
You less know how to value her desert 135 

Than she to scant her duty. 

Lear. Say, how is that? 

Reg. I cannot think my sister in the least 
Would fail her obligation: if, ar, perchance 
She have restrained the riots oijo\u followers^ 
T is on such ground, and to such wholesome end, 140 

As clears her from all blame. 

Lear. My curses on her I 

Reg. O, sir, you are old; 

Nature in you stands on the very verge 
Of her confine: you should be ruled and led 
By some discretion, that cfiscems your state 145 

Better than you yourself. Therefore, I pray you, 
That to our sister you do make return; 
Say you have wrong'd her, sir. 

Lear. Ask her forgiveness? 

Do you but mark bow thb becomes the house : 
' Dear daughter, I confess that I am old; [Kneeling i$o 
Age is unnecessary: on my knees I beg 
That you 11 voucl»afe me raiment, bed, and food '. 

Reg, Good sir, no niore; these are unsightly tricks: 
Returof you to my sbter. 



40 KINO LEAR [Act II 

Lear. \Ris%ng\ Never, Regan: 

She hath abated me of half my train; 155 

Look'd black upon me; struck me with her tongue 
Most serpent-like, upon the very heart : 
All the stored vengeances of heaven fall 
On her ingrateful top! Strike her young bones. 
You taking airs, with lameness! 

Com, Fie, sir, fie I 160 

Lear. You nimble lightnings, dart your blinding flames 
Into her scornful eyes! Infect her beauty. 
You fen-suck'd fogs, drawn by the powerftil sun, 
To fall and blast her pride! 

Reg, O the blest gods! so will you wish on me, 165 

When the rash mood is on. 

Lear, No, Regan, thou shalt never have my curse: 
Thy tender-hefted nature shall not give 
Thee o'er to harshness : her eyes are fierce ; but thine 
Do comfort and not bum. *T is not in thee 170 

To grudge my pleasures, to cut off my train. 
To bandy hasty words, to scant my sizes, 
And in conclusion to oppose the bolt 
Against my coming in: thou better know*st 
The offices of nature, bond of childhood, 175 

Effects of courtesy, dues of gratitude ; 
Thy half o' the kingdom hast thou not forgot. 
Wherein I thee endow'd. 

Reg, Grood sir, to the purpose. 

Lear, Who put my man i' the stocks? \Tucket wttkm 

Com, What trumpet 's that ? 

Reg, I know t, my sister's : this approves her letter, 180 
That she would soon be here. 

Enter Oswald 

Is your lady come? 
Lear, This is a slave, whose easy-borrow'd pride 

Dwells in the fickle grace of her he follows. 

Out, varlet, from my sight ! 
Com. What means your grace? 184 

Lear, Who SvOck'd my servant? Regan, I have good hope 

Thou didst not know on 't Who comes here? O heavens. 



Scene 4] KING LEAR 41 

Enter Gonbril 

If you do love old men, if your sweet sway 

Allow obedience, if yourselves are old, 

Make it your cause ; send down, and take my part! 

[To G<m,'\ Art not ashamed to look upon this beard? 190 

Regan, wilt thou take her by the hand? 

Gon, Why not by the hand, sir? How have I offended? 
All 's not offence that indiscretion finds 
And dotage terms so. 

Lear. O sides, you are too tough; 

Will you yet hold? How came my man i' the stocks? 195 

Com. I set him there, sir : but his own disorders 
Deserved much less advancement. 

Lear. You I did you? 

Reg". I pray you, father, being weak, seem so. 
If, till the expiration of your month. 

You will return and sojourn with my sister, 200 

Dismissing half your train, come then to me: 

1 am now from home, and out of that provision 
Which shall be needful for your entertainment. 

Lear. Return to her, and fifty men dismissed? 
No, rather I abjure all roofs, and choose 205 

To wage against the enmity o' the air; 
To be a comrade with the wolf and owl, — 
Necessity's sharp pinch I Return with her? 
Why, the hot-blooded France, that dowerless took 
Our youngest bom, I could as well be brought 210 

To knee his throne, and, squire-like, pension beg 
To keep base life afoot. Return with her? 
Persuade me rather to be slave and sumpter 
To this detested groom. [Pointing^ at Oswald 

Gon. At your choice, sir. 

Z^ar. I prithee, daughter, do not make me mad: 215 
I will not trouble thee, my child; farewell: 
We 11 no more meet, no more see one another: 
But yet thou art my flesh, my blood, my daughter; 
Or rather a disease that *s in my flesh. 
Which I must needs call mine: thou art a boil, 220 

A plague-sore, an embossed carbuncle. 



4» KING LEAR [Act II 

In my corrupted blood. But 1 11 not chide thee; 

Let shame come when it will, I do not call it: 

I do not bid the thunder-bearer shoot, 

Nor tell tales of thee to high-judging Jove: 325 

Mend when thou canst; be better at thy leisure: 

I can be patient ; I can stay with Regan, 

I and my hundred knights. 

He^. Not altogether so: 

I look'd not for you yet, nor am provided 
For your fit welcome. Give ear, sir, to my sister; 230 

For those that mingle reason with your passion 
Must be content to think you old, and so— 
But she knows what she does. 

Lear, Is this well spoken? 

jRe£^, I dare avouch it, sir: what, fifty followers? 
Is it not well? What should you need of more? 235 

Yea, or so many, sith that both charge and danger 
Speak 'gainst so great a number ? How, in one house. 
Should many people, under two commands. 
Hold amity? *Tis hard; almost impossible. 

Gan. Why might not you, my lord, receive attendance 
From those that she calls servants or from mine? 241 

lie^. Why not, my lord? If then they chanced to slack 
you. 
We could control them. If you will come to me, — 
For now I Spy a danger, — I entreat you 
To bring but five-and«twenty: to no more 245 

Wll I give place or notice. 

Lear. I gave you all — 

jRe^, And in good time you gave it 

Lear, Made you my guardians, my depositaries, 
But kept a reservation to be foUow'd 

With such a number. What, must I come to you 250 

With five-and-twenty, Regan? said you so? 

He^, And speak *t again, my lord; no more with me. 

Lear. Those wicked creatures yet do look well-favour'd, 
When others are more wicked; not being the worst 
Stands in some rank of praise. [To Gan.] Ill go with thee: 
Thy fifty yet doth double five-and-twenty, 256 

And thou art twice her love. 



Scene 4] KING LEAR 43 

Gon. Hear me, my lord: 

What need you five-and-twenty, ten, or five, 
To follow in a house where twice so many 
Have a command to tend you? 

Reg. What need one? 260 

Lear. O, reason not the need: our basest beggars 
Are in the poorest thing superfluous: 
Allow not nature more than nature needs, 
Man's life 's as cheap as beast's: thou art a lady; 
If only to go warm were gorgeous, 265 

Why, nature needs not what thou goi^eous wear'st, 
Which scarcely keeps thee warm. But, for true need, — 
You heavens, give me that patience, patience I need I 
You see me here, you gods, a poor old man, 
As full of grief as age; wretched in both I 270 

If it be you that stirs tiiese daughters' hearts 
Agsdnst their father, fool me not so much 
To bear it tamely; touch me with noble anger, 
And let not women's weapons, water-drops. 
Stain my man's cheeks ! No, you unnatural hags, 275 
I will have such revenges on you both. 
That all the world shall — I will do such things, — 
What they are, yet I know not; but they shall be 
The terrors of the earth. ■ You think I 'U weep; 
No, 1 11 not weep: 280 

I have full cause of weeping; but this heart 
Shall break into a hundred thousand flaws, 
Or ere 1 11 weep. O fool, I shall go mad ! 

{Exeunt Lear^ Gloucester ^ Kent, and Fool 
Storm and tempest 

Com. Let us withdraw; 't will be a storm. 

Reg^. This house is little: the old man and his people 
Cannot be well bestow'd. 286 

Gon. Tis his own blame; hath put himself from rest. 
And must needs taste his folly. 

Reg. For his particular, 1 11 receive him gladly, 
But not one follower. 

Gon. So am I purposed. 290 

Where is my lord of Gloucester? 

Com. Follow'd the old man forth: he is retum'd. 



44 KING LEAR [Act III 

Re-enter Gloucester 

Glou. The king is in high rage. 

Com. Whither is he going? 

Ghu, He calls to horse; but will I know not whither. 

Cofn. Tis best to g^ve him way; he leads himself. 295 

Gon, My lord, entreat him by no means to stay. 

Ghu. Alack, the night comes on, and the bleak winds 
Do sorely ruffle; for many miles about 
There 's scarce a bush. 

Reg. O, sir, to wilful men, 

The injuries that they themselves procure 300 

Must be their schoolmasters. Shut up your doors: 
He is attended with a desperate train; 
And what they may incense him to, being apt 
To have hb ear abused, wisdom bids fear. 

Com. Shut up your doors, my lord; 't is a wild night: 
My Regan counsels well: come out o' the stoniL 306 

[Exeunt 

ACT III 

Scene I. A heaik 

Storm sHU. Enter Kent and a GenUeman^ meeting 

Kent Who 's there, besides foul weather? 

Gent One minded like the weather, most unquietly. 

Kent. I know you. Where 's the king? 

Crent. Contending with the fretful element; 
Bids the wind blow the earth into the sea, 5 

Or swell the curled waters *bove the main, 
That things might change or cease; tears his white hair. 
Which the impetuous blasts, with eyeless rage, 
Catch in their fury, and make nothing of; 
Strives in his little world of man to out-scorn 10 

The to-and-fro-conflicting wind and rain. 
This night, wherein the cub-drawn bear would couch» 
The lion and the belly-pinched wolf 
Keep their fur dry, unbonneted he runs. 
And bids what will take alL 



Scene ij KING LEAR 45 

KenL But who is with him? 15 

Gent, None but the fool; who labours to out-jest 
His heart-struck injuries. 

Kent, Sir, I do know you; 

And dare, upon the warrant of my note, 
Conmiend a dear thing to you. There is division, 
Although as yet the face of it be cover'd 20 

With mutual cunning, 'twixt Albany and Co^Tiwall; 
Who have — as who have not, that their great stars 
Throned and set high ? — servants, who seem no less, 
Which are to France the spies and speculations 
Intelligent of our state; what hath been seen, 25 

Either in snuffs and packings of the dukes. 
Or the hard rein which both of them have borne 
Against the old kind king; or something deeper. 
Whereof perchance these are but furnishings; 
But, true it is, from France there comes a power 30 

Into this scattered kingdom; who already, 
Wise in our negligence, have secret feet 
In some of our best ports, and are at point 
To show their open banner. Now to you: 
If on my credit you dare build so far 35 

To make your speed to Dover, you shall find 
Some that will thank you, making just report 
Of how unnatural and bemadding sorrow 
The king hath cause to plain. 

I am a gentleman of blood and breeding; 40 

And, from some knowledge and assurance, offer 
This office to you. 

Gent, I will talk further with you. 

Kent No, do not 

For confirmation that I am much more 
Than my out-wall, open this purse, and take 45 

What it contains. If you shall see Cordelia, — 
As fear not but you shall, — show her this ring; 
And she will tell you who your fellow is 
That yet you do not know. Fie on this storm ! 
I will go seek the king. 50 

Gent. Give me your hand: have you no more to say? 

KenL Few words, but, to effect, more than all yet; 



46 KING LEAR [Act III 

That, when we have found the king, — in which your pain 

That way, 1 11 this, — ^he that first lights on him 

Holla the other. [Exeunt severally 55 

ScBNB II. Another part of ike heath. Storm still 
Enter Lbar and Fool 

Lear. Blow, winds, and crack your cheeks I rage I blow ! 
You cataracts and hurricanoes, spout 
Till you have drench'd our steeples, drown'd the cocks ! 
You sulphurous and thought-executing fires. 
Vaunt-couriers to oak-cleaving thunderbolts, 5 

Singe my white head ! And thou, all-shaking thunder, 
Smite fiat the thick rotundity o' the world ! 
Crack nature's moulds, all germens spill at once. 
That make ingratehil man ! 9 

Fool. O nuncle, court holy- water in a dry house is 
better than this rain-water out o' door. Good nuncle, in, 
and ask thy daughters' blessing : here 's a night pities 
neither wise man nor fool. 

Lear. Rumble thy bell3rful! Spit, fire! spout, rain I 
Nor rain, wind, thunder, fire, are my daughters: 1$ 

I tax not you, you elements, with unkindness; 
I never gave you kingdom, call'd you children, 
You owe me no subscription: then let fall 
Your horrible pleasure; here I stand, your slave, 
A poor, infirm, weak, and despised old man: 20 

But yet I call you servile ministers. 
That have with two pernicious daughters join'd 
Your high engender'd battles 'gainst a head 
So old and white as this. O ! O ! 't is foul ! 

Fool. He that has a house to put 's head in has a good 
head-piece. 26 

The man that makes his toe 

What he his heart should make 
Shall of a com cry woe. 
And turn his sleep to wake. 30 

For there was never yet £air woman but she made mouths 
in a glass. 



Seenea] KING LEAR 47 

Lear, No, I will be the pattern of all patience; I will 
say nothing. 

Enter Kent 

Kent Who's there? 35 

Fool, Marry, here 's a wise man and a fool. 

Kent Alas, sir, are you here? things that love night 
Love not such nights as these; the wrathful skies 
Gallow the very wanderers of the dark, 
And make them keep their caves: since I was man, 40 

Such sheets of fire, such bursts of horrid thunder, 
Such groans of roaring wind and rain, I never 
Remember to have heard: man's nature cannot cany 
The affliction nor the fear. 

Lear, Let the great gods, 

That keep this dreadful pother o'er our heads, 45 

Find out their enemies now. Tremble, thou wretch, 
That hast within thee undivulged crimes, 
Unwhipp'd of justice: hide thee, thou bloody hand; 
Thou perjured, and thou simular man of virtue 
That are incestuous: caitiff, to pieces shake, 50 

That under covert and convenient seeming 
Hast practised on man's life: close pent-up guilts 
Rive your concealing continents, and cry 
These dreadful summoners grace. I am a man 
More sinn'd against than sinning. 

Kent, Alack, bare-headed! 55 

Gracious my lord, hard by here is a hovel; 
Some friendship will it lend you 'gainst the tempest: 
Repose you there; while I to this hard house — 
More harder than the stones whereof 't is raised; 
Which even but now, demanding after you, 60 

Denied me to come in — return, and force 
Their scanted courtesy. 

Lear, My wits begin to turn. 

Come on, my boy: how dost, my boy? art cold? 
I am cold myself. Where is this straw, my fellow? 
The art of our necessities is strange, 65 

That can make vile things precious. Come, your hovel. 
Poor fool and knave, I have one part in my heart 
That 's sorry yet for thee. 



43 KING LEAR [Act III 

Fool, [Singing] He that has and a little tiny wit, — 

With hey, ho, the wind and the rain, — 70 

Must make content with his fortunes fit, 
For the rain it raineth every day. 

Lear, True, my good boy. Come, bring us to this 
hovel. [Exeunt Lear and Kent 

Fool. I '11 speak a prophecy ere I go : 

When priests are more in word than matter; 75 

When brewers mar their malt with water; 

When nobles are their tailors' tutors ; 

No heretics burn'd but wenches' suitors; 

When every case in law is right; 

No squire in debt, nor no poor knight; 8a 

When slanders do not live in tongues ; 

Nor cutpurses come not to throngs; 

Then shall the realm of Albion 

Come to great confusion : 

Then comes the time, who lives to see 't, 85 

That going shall be used with feet. 
This prophecy Merlin shall make; for I live before his 
time. [Exit 

Scene III. Gloucestet^s castle 

Enter Gloucester and Edmund 

Glou, Alack, alack, Edmund, I like not this unnatural 
dealing. When I desired their leave that I might pity 
him, they took from me the use of mine own house; 
charged me, on pain of their perpetual displeasure, neither 
to speak of him, entreat for him, nor any way sustain 
him. 6- 

Edm. Most savage and unnatural I 

Glou, Go to ; say you nothing. There 's a division be- 
twixt the dukes; and a worse matter than that: I have 
received a letter this night; 't is dangerous to be spoken; 
I have locked the letter in my closet: these injuries the 
king now bears will be revenged home; there 's part of a 
power already footed: we must incline to the king. I will. 
seek him, and privily relieve him: go you and maintain, 
talk with the duke, that my charity be not of him per-^ 



Scene 4] KING LEAR 49 

ceived: if he ask for me, I am ill, and gone to bed. 
Though I die for it, as no less is threatened me, the king 
my old master must be relieved. There is some strange 
thing toward, Edmund; pray you, be careful. [Exit 

Edm, This courtesy, forbid thee, shall the duke 20 

Instantly know; and of that letter too: 
This seems a fair deserving, and must draw me 
That which my £ather loses; no less than all: 
The younger rises when the old doth fall. [Exit 

Scene IV. The heath. Before a hovel 
Enter Lear, Kent, atut Fool 

KerU. Here is the place, my lord; good my lord, enter: 
The tyranny of the open night 's too rough 
For nature to endure. [Storm stUl 

Lear, Let me alone. 

Kent Good my lord, enter here. 

Lear, Wilt break my heart? 

Kent, I had rather break mine own. Good my lord, 
enter. ' 5 

Lear, Thou think'st *tis much that this contentious 
storm 
Invades us to the skin: so *tis to thee; 
But where the greater malady is fixed. 
The lesser is scarce felt. Thou Idst shun a bear; 
But if thy flight lay toward the raging sea, 10 

Thou Idst meet the bear i' the mouth. When the mind *s 

fi-ee. 
The body 's delicate : the tempest in my mind 
Doth from my senses take all feeling else 
Save what beats there. Filial ingratitude ! 
Is it not as this mouth should tear this hand 15 

For lifting food to 't? But I will punish home: 
No, I will weep no more. In such a night 
To shut me out! Pour on; I will endiu-e. 
In such a night as this! O Regan, Goneril! 
Your old kind father, whose frank heart gave all,-^ ao 
O, that way madness lies ; let me shun that; 
No more of that 



50 KING LEAR [AgI III 

Kent Good my lord, enter here. 

Z^ttr. Prithee, go in thyself; seek thine own ease: 
This tempest will not give me leave to ponder 
On things would hurt me more. But I *11 go in. 25 

[To the Fool] In, boy; go first You houseless poverty, — 
Nay, get thee in. 1 11 pray, and then 1 11 sleep. 

[Fool goes in 
Poor naked wretches, whereso'er you are, 
That bide the pelting of this pitiless storm, 
How shall your houseless heads and unfed sides, 30 

Your loop'd and window'd raggedness, defend you 
From seasons such as these? O, I have ta'en 
Too little care of this I Take physic, pomp; 
Expose thyself to feel what wretches feel. 
That thou mayst shake the superflux to them, 35 

And show the heavens more just. 

Edg, [ Within] Fathom and half, fathom and half! P6or 
Tom ! [The Fool runs out from the kofoel 

Fool, Come not in here, nuncle, here 's a spirit. 
Help me, help me! 

Kent. Give me thy hand. Who 's there? 40 

FooL A spirit, a spirit: he says his name *s poor Tom. 

Kent. What art thou that dost grumble there i' the 
straw? Come forth. 

Enter Edgar disguised as a madman 

Edg. Away! the foul fiend follows me! 
Through the sharp hawthorn blows the cold wind. 
Hum! go to thy cold bed, and warm thee. 45 

Lear. Hast thou given all to thy two daughters? 
And art thou come to this? 

Edg. Who gives any thing to poor Tom? whom the 
foul fiend hath led through fire and through flame, 
through ford and whirlipool, o'er bog and quagmire; that 
hath laid knives under his pillow, and halters in his pew; 
set ratsbane by his porridge; made him proud of heart, to 
ride on a bay trotting4iorse over four4nched bridges, to 
course his own shadow for a traitor. Bless thy five wits! 
Tom 's a-cold,— O, do de, do de, do de. Bless thee firom 
whirlwinds, star-blasting, and taking! Do poor Tom aome 



Scene 4] KING LEAR 51 

charity, whom the foul fiend vexes: there could I have 
him now, and there, and there again, and there. 58 

[Storm stiU 

Lear. What, have his daughters brought him to this pass? 
Couldst thou save nothing? Didst thou give them all? 

Fool. Nay, he reserved a blanket, else we. had been all 
shamed. 

Zjear. Now, all the plagues that in the pendulous air 
Hang fated o'er men's faults light on thy daughters! 

Kent He hath no daughters, sir. 65 

Lear, Death, traitor 1 nothing could have subdued natiu-e 
To such a lowness but his unkind daughters. 
Is it the fashion that discarded fathers 
Should have thus little mercy on their flesh? 
Judicious punishment ! 't was this flesh begot 70 

Those pelican daughters. 

Ed/f, Pillicock sat on Pillicock-hill : 
Halloo, halloo, loo, loo! 

Fool. This cold night will turn us all to fools and mad- 
men. 75 

Edg". Take heed o' the foul fiend: obey thy parents; 
keep thy word justly ; swear not ; cmnmit not with man's 
sworn spouse; set not thy sweet heart on proud array. 
Tom's a-cold. 

Lear. What hast thou been? 80 

Edg-. A serving-man, proud in heart and mind; that 

curled my hair; wore gloves in my cap; swore as many 

oaths as I spake words, and broke them in the sweet face 

of heaven : one that slept in the contriving of lust, and 

waked to do it: wine loved I deeply, dice dearly; and in 

woman out-paramoured the Turk : false of heart, light of 

ear, bloody of hand; hog in sloth, fox in stealth, wolf in 

greediness, dog in madness, lion in prey. Let not the 

creaking of shoes nor the rustling of silks betray thy poor 

heart to woman : keep thy pen fi-om lenders' books, and 

defy the foul fiend. 91 

Still through the hawthorn blows the cold wind: 

Says suum, mun, ha, no, nonny. 

Dolphin my boy, my boy, sesea! let him trot by. 

[Storm sHU 



53 KING LEAR [Act III 

Lear, Why, thou wert better in thy grave than to 
answer with thy uncovered body this extremity of the 
skies. Is man no more than this? Consider him well. 
Thou owest the worm no silk, the beast no hide, the 
sheep no wool, the cat no perfume. Hal here's three 
on's are sophisticated! Thou art the thing itself: un- 
accommodated man is no more but such .*% poor, bare, 
forked animal as thou art Off, off, you lendings ! come, 
come, unbutton here. [Tearing off his clothes 

Fool. Prithee, nuncle, be contented; 't is a naughty night 
to swim in. Look, here comes a walking fire. 105 

Enter Gloucester wiih a torch 

Edg. This is the foul fiend Flibbertigibbet : he begins at 
curfew, and walks till the first cock ; he gives the web and 
the pin, squints the eye, and makes the hare-lip ; mildews 
the white wheat, and hurts the poor creature of earth. 

S. Withold footed thrice the old; no 

He met the night-mare, and her nine-fold; 

Bid her alight. 

And her troth plight. 
And, aroint thee, witch, aroint thee! 

Kent How fares your grace? 115 

Lean What 'she? 

Kent Who's there? What is 't you seek? 

Glou. What are you there? Your names? 118 

Edg, Poor Tom; that eats the swimming frog, the toad, 
the tadpole, the wall-newt and the water; that in the fury 
of his heart, when the foul fiend rages, eats cow-dung for 
sallets; swallows the old rat and the ditch-dog; drinks the 
green mantle of the standing-pool ; who is whipped from 
tithing to tithing, and stock -punished, and imprisoned; 
who hath had three suits to his back, six shirts to his 
body, horse to ride, and weapon to wear; 126 

But mice and rats, and such small deer. 
Have been Tom's food for seven long year. 

Beware my follower. Peace, Smulkin; peace, thou fiend ! 
Ghu. What, hath your grace no better company? 130 



8eene4] KING LEAR 53 

Ed^, The prince of darkness is a gentleman: 
Modo he 's call'd, and Mahu. 

Glau, Our flesh and blood is grown so vile» my lord. 
That it doth hate what gets it. 

Ed^, Poor Tom 's a-cold. 135 

Ghu. Go in with me : my duty cannot sufier 
To obey in all your daughters* hard commands: 
Though their injunction be to bar my doors, 
And let this tyrannous night take hold upon you. 
Yet have I ventured to come seek you out, 140 

And bring you where both fire and food is ready. 

Lear. First let me talk with this philosopher. 
What is the cause of thunder? 

Kent, Good my lord, take his offer; go into the house. 

Lear, 1 11 talk a word with this same learned Theban. 
What is your study? 146 

Edg, How to prevent the fiend, and to kill vermin. 

Lear, Let me ask you one word in private. 

Kent, Importune him once more to go, my lord; 
His wits begin to unsettle. 

Glou, Canst thou blame him? [Storm still 

His daughters seek his death: ah, that good Kent I 151 
He said it would be thus, poor banish'd man ! 
Thou say'st the king grows mad ; 1 11 tell thee, friend, 
I am almost mad myself: I had a son. 
Now outlawed from my blood; he sought my life, 155 

But lately, very late; I loved him, friend; 
No father his son dearer : truth to tell thee. 
The grief hath crazed my wits. What a night 's this I 
I do beseech your grace, — 

Lear, O, cry you mercy, sir. 

Noble philosopher, your company. x6o 

Edg, Tom's a-cold. 

Glou, In, fellow, there, into the hovel: keep thee warm. 

Lear, Come, let 's in all. 

Kent. This way, my lord. 

Lear. With him; 

I will keep still with my philosopher. 

Kent. Good my lord, soothe him ; let him take the fellow. 

Glou. Take him you on. 166 

(M906) g 



54 KINO LEAR [Act III 

Kent Sirrah^ come on; go along with us, 
Lear, Come, good Athenian. 
Glou. No words, no words : hush. 

Edg. Child Rowland to the dark tower came^ 170 

His word was still, — Fie, foh, and fum, 
I smell the blood of a British man. [Exeum 

ScBNK V. Ghucestei^s castle 
Enter Cornwall and Edmund 

Cam, I will have my revenge ere I depart his house. 

Edm, How, my lord, I may be censured, that nature 
thus gives way to loyalty, something fears me to think ot. 

Com, I now perceive it was not altogether your brother's 
evil disposition made him seek his death ; but a provoking 
merit, set a-work by a reproveable badness in himself. 6 

Edm, How malicious is my fortune, that I must repent 
to be just ! This is the letter he spoke of, which approves 
him an intelligent party to the advantages of France. O 
heavens! that this treason were not, or not I the detectcn-l 

Com, Go with me to the duchess. 1 1 

Edm, If the matter of this paper be certain, you have 
mighty business in hand. 

Com, True or false, it hath made thee Earl of Glou- 
cester. Seek out where thy £ather is, that he may be 
ready for our apprehension. 16 

Edm, [Aside] If I find him comforting the king, it will 
stuff his suspicion more fully. — I will persevere in my 
course of loyalty, though the conflict be sore between that 
and my blood. 20 

Com, I will lay trust upon thee; and thou shalt find 
a dearer fether in my love. [Exeunt 

ScBNB VI. A chamber in a farmhouse adjoining 
the castle 

Enter Gloucester, Lear, Kent, Fool, and Edgar 

Glou, Here is better than the open £ur; take it thank* 
fidly. I will piece out the comfort with what addition 
I can: I will not be long from you. 



8eene6] KING LEAR 55 

KefU, All the power of his wits have given way to his 
impatiences the gods reward your kindness! 5 

\ExU Gloucester 

Edg. Frateretto calls me; and tells me Nero is an angler 
in the lake of darkness. Pray, innocent, and beware the 
foul fiend. 

Fool, Prithee, nuncle, tell me whether a madman be a 
gentleman or a yeoman? 10 

Lear, A king, a king ! 

Fool, No, he's a yeoman that has a gentleman to his 
son; for he 's a mad yeoman that sees his son a gentleman 
before him. 

Lear, To have a thousand with red burning spits 15 
Come hissing in upon 'em, — 

Edg, The foul fiend bites my back. 

Fool, He 's mad that trusts in the tameness of a wolf, 
a horse's health, a boy's love. 

Lear, It shall be done; I will arraign them straight. 20 
\To Edgar] Come, sit thou here, most learned justicer ; 
[To the Fool] Thou, sapient sir, sit here. Now, you she 
foxes ! 

Edg, Look, where he stands and glares ! Wantest thou 
eyes at trial, madam? 

Come o'er the bourn, Bessy, to me, — 25 

FoaL Her boat hath a leak. 

And she must not speak 
Why she dares not come over to thee. 

Edg, The foul fiend haunts poor Tom in the voice of a 
nightingale. Hopdance cries in Tom's belly for two white 
herring. Croak not, black angel; I have no food for 
thee. 32 

ITent How do you, sir? Stand you not so amazed: 
Will you lie down and rest upon the cushions? 

Lear, 1 11 see their trial first. Bring in the evidence. 
[To Edgar] Thou robed man of justice, take thy place; 36 
[To the Foot] And thou, his yoke-fellow of equity. 
Bench by his side: [To Kent] you are o' the commissioDy 
Sit you too. 



56 KING LEAR [Act III 

Edg. Let us deal justly. 40 

Sleepest or wakest thou, jolly shepherd? 

Thy sheep be in the corn; 
And for one blast of thy minikin mouth, 

Thy sheep shall take no harm. 

Purl the cat is gray. 45 

Lear, Arraign her first; 'tis Goneril. 1 here take my 
oath before this honourable assembly, she kicked the poor 
king her father. 
Fooh Come hither, mistress. Is your name Goneril? 
Lear, She cannot deny it. 50 

Fool, Cry you mercy, I took you for a joint-stool. 
Lear, And here 's another, whose warp*d looks proclaim 
What store her heart is made on. Stop her there ! 
Arms, arms, sword, fire ! Corruption in the place ! 
False justicer, why hast thou let her 'scape? 55 

Edg, Bless thy five wits ! 
Kent, O pity! Sir, where is the patience now, 
That you so oft have boasted to retain? 

Edg, [Aside] My tears begin to take his part so much. 
They 11 mar my counterfeiting. 60 

Lear, The little dogs and all. 
Tray, Blanch, and Sweet-heart, see, they bark at me. 

Edg, Tom will throw his head at them. Avaunt, you 
curs! 

Be thy mouth or black or white, 65 

Tooth that poisons if it bite; 

Mastiff, greyhound, mongrel grim, 

Hound or spaniel, brach or lym, 

Or bobtail tike or trundle-tail, 

Tom will make them weep and wail: 70 

For, with throwing thus my head. 

Dogs leap the hatch, and all are fled. 

Do de, de, de. Sessa! Come, march to wakes and fyars 
and market-towns. Poor Tom, thy horn is dry. 74 

Lear, Then let them anatomize Regan; see what breeds 
about her heart. Is there any cause in nature that makes 
these hard hearts? [To Edgar\ You, sir, I entertain for 



Scene 6] KING LEAR 57 

one of my hundred ; only I do not like the fashion of your 
garments: you will say they are Persian attire; but let 
them be changed. ' 80 

Kent Now, good my lord, lie here and rest awhile. 

Lear. Make no noise, make no noise; draw the curtains: 
so, so, so. We '11 go to supper i' the morning. So, so, so. 

Fool, And I '11 go to bed at noon. 

Re-enter Gloucester 

Ghu, Come hither, fiiend: where is the king my master? 

Kent, Here, sir; but trouble him not, his wits are gone. 

GUm, Good friend, I prithee, take him in thy amis; 87 
I have o'erheard a plot of death upon him: 
There is a litter ready; lay him in 't, 
And drive towards Dover, friend, where thou shalt meet 
Both welcome and protection. Take up thy master: 91 
If thou shouldst dally half an hour, his life, 
With thine, and all that offer to defend him, 
Stand in assured loss : take up, take up ; 
And follow me, that will to some provision 95 

Give thee quick conduct 

Kent Oppressed nature sleeps : 

This rest might yet have balm'd thy broken sinews. 
Which, if convenience will not allow. 
Stand in hard cure. \To the Fool] Come, help to bear 

thy master : 
Thou must not stay behind. 

Glou. Come, come, away. 100 

[Exeunt all but Edgar 

Edg, When we our betters see bearing our woes. 
We scarcely think ouf miseries our foes. 
Who alone suffers suffers most i' the mind. 
Leaving free things and happy shows behind: 
But then the mind much sufferance doth o'erskip 105 

When grief hath mates, and bearing fellowship. 
How light and portable my pain seems now. 
When that which makes me bend makes the king bow; 
He childed as I fathered ! Tom, away! 
Mark the high noises, and thyself bewray no 

When &lse opinion, whose wrong thought defiles thee, 



58 KING LEAR (Act III 

In thy just proof repeals and reconciles thee. 

What will hap more to-night, safe 'scape the king I 

Lurk, lurk. [ExH 

Scene VII. Gloucestet^s castie 

Enter Cornwall, Regan, Goneril, Edmund, and 
Servants 

Com, Post speedily to my lord your husband; show him 
this letter : the army of France is landed. Seek out the 
villain Gloucester. [Exeunt some of the Servants 

Reg, Hang him instantly. 

Gon, Pluck out his eyes. $ 

Com, Leave him to my displeasure. Edmimd, keep 
you our sister company: the revenges we are bound to 
take upon your traitorous father are not fit for your 
beholding. Advise the duke, where you are going, to 
a most festinate preparation: we are bound to the like. 
Our posts shall be swift and intelligent betwixt us. Fare* 
well, dear sister : farewell, my lord of Gloucester* la 

Enter Oswald 

How now! where 's the king? 

Osw, My lord of Gloucester hath convey'd him hence: 
Some five or six and thirty of his knights, 15^ 

Hot questrists after him, met him at gate; 
Who, with some other of the lords depen<kuits. 
Are gone with him towards Dover ; where they boast 
To have well-armed fi-iends. 

Com, Get horses for your mistress. 

Gon, Farewell, sweet lord, and sister. 2a 

Com, Edmund, farewell. 

[Exeunt Gonenl, Edmund, dfid Oswald 
Go seek the traitor Gloucester, 
Pinion him like a thief, bring him before us. 

[Exeunt otker Servants 
Though well we may not pass upon his life 
"Without the form of justice, yet our power 
Shall do a courtesy to our wrath, which men 25 

May blame, but not control. Who's there? the traitor? 



Scene 7} KING LEAR 59 

Enter Gloucester, brought in by two or three 

Reg. Ingrateftil fox! 'tis he. 

Com, Bind fast his corky arms. 

GUm, What mean your graces? Good my fnends, con- 
sider 
You are my guests : do me no foul play, friends. 30 

Com, Bind him, I say. \Servants bind him 

Reg, Hard, hard. O filthy traitor I 

Glou, Unmerciful lady as you are, I 'm none. 

Com, To this chair bind him. Villain, thou shah find — 

\Regan plucks his beard 

Glou, By the kind gods, 't is most ignobly done 
To pluck me by the beard. 35 

Reg, So white, and such a traitor! 

Ghu, Naughty lady. 

These hairs, which thou dost ravish from my chin, 
Will quicken, and accuse thee : I am your host: 
With robbers' hands my hospitable favours 
You should not ruffie thus. What will you do? 40 

Com, Come, sir, what letters had you late fi^m France 

Reg, Be simple answerer, for we know the truth. 

Com. And what confederacy have you with the traitors 
Late footed in the kingdom? 

Reg. To whose hands have you sent the lunatic king? 
Speak. 

Glou, I have a letter guessingly set down, 46 

Which came from one that 's of a neutral heart, 
And not fi:t>m one opposed. 

Corn, Cunning. 

Reg, And &dse. 

Com, Where hast thou sent the king? 

Ghu, To Dover. 50 

Reg, Wherefore to Dover? Wast thou not charged at 
peril — 

Com, Wherefore to Dover? Let him first answer that 

Glou, I am tied to the stake, and I must stand the 
course. 

Reg, Wherefore to Dov^r, s}r? 

Glou, Pec^use I would i^ $e# thy cmel nails 5 j 



6o KING LEAR [Act III 

Pluck out his poor old eyes; nor thy fierce sister 

In his anointed flesh stick boarish fkngs. 

The sea, with such a storm as his bare head 

In hell-black night endured, would have buoy'd up, 

And quench'd the stelled fires: 60 

Yet, poor old heart, he holp the heavens to rain. 

If wolves had at thy gate howl'd that stem time, 

Thou shouldst have said * Good porter, turn the key *, 

All cruels else subscribed : but I shall see 

The winged vengeance overtake such children. 65 

Cam, See 't shalt thou never. Fellows, hold the chair. 
Upon these eyes of thine I '11 set my foot. 

Ghu. He that will think to live till he be old, 
Give me some help ! O cruel ! O you gods I 

Reg', One side will mock another; the other too. 70 

Com, If you see vengeance, — 

First Serv, Hold your hand, my lord: 

I have served you ever since I was a child; 
But better service have I never done you 
Than now to bid you hold. 

Reg", How now, you dogi 

First Serv, If you did wear a beard upon your chin, 75 
I *d shake it on this quarrel. What do you mean? 

Corn, My villain! [They draw and fight 

First Serv. Nay, then, come on, and take the chance of 
anger. 

Reg, Give me thy sword. A peasant stand up thus I 

[Takes a sword^ and runs at him behind 

First Serv, O, I am slain 1 My lord, you have one eye 

left 80 

To see some mischief on him. O I [Dies 

Corn, Lest it see more, prevent it. Out, vUe jelly I 
Where is thy lustre now? 

Glou, All dark and comfortless. Where *s my son 
Edmund? 
Edmund, enkindle all the sparks of nature, 85 

To quit this horrid act 

Reg. Out, treacherous villain t 

Thou call'st on him that hates thee: it was he 
That made the overture of thy treasons to us; 



Act IV Scene x] KING LEAR 6i 

Who is too good to pity thee. 

Glou. O my follies I then Edgar was abused. 90 

Kind gods, forgive me that, and prosper himl 

Reg-. Gro thrust him out at gates, and let him smell 
His way to Dover. [Exit one iviih Gloucester 

How is 't, my lord? how look you? 

Com, I have received a hurt: follow me, lady. 
Turn out that eyeless villain; throw this slave 95 

Upon the dunghill. Regan, I bleed apace: 
Untimely comes this hurt: give me your arm. 

[Exit Cornwall led by Regan 

Sec. &erv, 1 11 never care what wickedness I do. 
If this man come to good. 

Third Serv, If she live long, 

And in the end meet the old course of death, 100 

Women will all turn monsters. 

Sec, Serv, Let 's follow the old earl, and get the Bedlam 
To lead him where he would: his roguish madness 
Allows itself to any thing. 

Third Serv, Go thou : 1 11 fetch some flax and whites of 
eggs 105 

To apply to his bleeding face. Now, heaven help him I 

[Exeunt severally 



ACT IV 

SCBNB I. The heath 
Enter Edgar 



V 



Edg, Yet better thus, and known to be contemn'd 
Than still contemn'd and flattered. To be worst. 
The lowest and most dejected thing of fortune. 
Stands still in esperance, lives not in fear: 
The lamentable change is jft-om the best; 
The worst returns to laughter. Welcome, then. 
Thou unsubstantial air that I embrace I 
The wretch that thou hast blown unto the worst 
Owes nothing to thy blasts. But who comes heiie? 



62 KING LEAR [Act IV 

Enter Gloucester led by an Old Man 

My father, poorly led? World, world, O world I lo 

But that thy strange mutations make us hate thee, 
'Life would not yield to age. 

Old Man, O, my gooKl lord, I have been your tenant, 
and your feither*s tenant, these fourscore years. 

Glou. Away, get thee away; good friend, be gone: 15 
Thy comforts can do me no good at all; 
Thee they may hurt 

Old Man, Alack, sir, you cannot see your way. 

Glou, I have no way, and therefore want no eyes; 
I stumbled when I saw: full oft *tis seen, 20 

Our means secure us, and our mere defects 
Prove our commodities. O dear son Edgar 
The food of thy abused father's wrath! 
Might I but live to see thee in my touch, 
I Id say I had eyes again 1 

Old Man, How nowl Who 's there? 2$ 

Edg-, [Aside,] O gods 1 Who is 't can say ' I am at the 
worst*? 
I am worse than e'er I was. 

Old Man, T is poor mad Tom. 

Edg-, [Aside] And worse I may be yet: the worst is not 
So long as we can say ' This is the worst '. 

Old Man, Fellow, where goest? 

Glou, Is it a beggar-man? 30 

Old Man, Madman and beggar too. 

Glou, He has some reason, else he could not beg. 
I' the last night's storm I such a fellow saw; 
Which made me think a man a worm: my son 
Came then into my mind; and yet my mind 35 

Was then scarce friends with him: I have heard more 

since. 
As flies to wanton boys, are we to the gods ; 
They kill us for their sport 

Edg. [Aside] How should this be? 

Bad is the trade that must play fool to sorrow. 
Angering itself and others. — Bless thee, master I 40 

Glou. It that the naked fellow? 



Seenei] KING LEAR 63 

Old Man. hjy nij lord. 

Glou, Then, prithee, get thee gone : if, for my sake. 
Thou wilt o'ertake us, hence a mile or twain, 
P the way toward Dover, do it for ancient love; 
And bring some covering for this naked soul, 45 

Who 1 11 entreat to lead me. 

Old Man, Alack, sir, he is mad. 

Ghu, Tis the times' plague, when madmen lead the 
blind. 
Do as I bid thee, or rather do thy pleasture; 
Above the rest, be gone. 

Old Man. 1 11 bring him the best 'parel that I have, 50 
Come on 't what will. [Exit 

Glou. Sirrah, naked fellow, — 

Edg^. Poor Tom 's a-cold. [Aside\ I cannot daub it 
fiirther. 

Glou. Come hither, fellow. 

Edg: [Aside] And yet I must— Bless thy sweet eyes, 
they bleed. 55 

Glou. Know*st thou the way to Dover? 

Edg. Both stile and gate, horse-way and foot-path. 
Poor Tom hath been scared out of his good wits: bless 
thee, good man's son, from the foul fiend I five fiends have 
been in poor Tom at once; of lust, as Obidicut; Hobbidi- 
dance, prince of dumbness ; Mahu, of stealing ; Modo, of 
murder; Flibbertigibbet, of mopping and mowing, who 
since possesses chambermaids and waiting-women. So, 
bless Uiee, master ! 

Glou. Here, take this purse, thou whom the heavens' 
plagues 65 

Have humbled to all strokes : that I am wretched 
Makes thee the happier: heavens, deal so still I 
Let the superfluous and lust-dieted man. 
That slaves your ordinance, that will not see 
Because de doth not feel, feel your power quickly; 70 

So distribution should undo excess, 
And each man have enough. Dost thou know Dover? 
Edg. Ay, master. 

Glou. Tliere is a cliff, whose high and bending head 
Looks fearfully in the confined deep: 75 



64 KING LEAR [Act IV 

Bring me but to the very brim of it. 
And 1 11 repair the misery thou dost bear 
With something rich about me: from that place 
I sliall no leading need. 

Edg, Give me thy arm : 

Poor Tom shall lead thee. [Exeunt So 

Scene II. Before the Duke of Albany s palace 
Enter Goneril and Edmund 

Gon, Welcome, my lord: I marvel our mild husband 
Not met us on the way. 

Enter Oswau> 

Now, where 's your master? 

Osw, Madam, within; but never man so changed. 
I told him of the army that was landed; 
He smiled at it: I told him you were coming; 5 

His answer was 'The worse ': of Gloucester's treachery, 
And of the loyal service of his son, 
When I inform'd him, then he calPd me sot. 
And told me I had tum'd the wrong side out: 
What most he should dislike seems pleasant to him; 10 
What like, offensive. 

Gan. [To Edm,] Then shall you go no further. 
It is the cowish terror of his spirit. 
That dares not undertake: he '11 not feel wrongs 
Which tie him to an answer. Our wishes on the way 
May prove effects. Back, Edmund, to my brother; 15 
Hasten his musters and conduct his poiyers: 
I must change arms at home, and give the distafif 
Into my husband's hands. This trusty servant 
Shall pass between us : ere long you are like to hear, 
If you dare venture in your own behalf, 20 

A mistress's conmiand. Wear this; spare speech; 

[Giving afavouf 
Decline your head: this kiss, if it durst speak, 
Would stretch thy spirits up into the air: 
Conceive, and fare thee well. 



Scenes] KING LEAR 6$ 

Edm, Yoors in the ranks of death. 

Gon, My most dear Gloucester! 

[Exit Edmund 
Oj the difference of man and man ! 26 

To thee a woman's services are due: 
My fool usurps my body. 

Osw. Madam, here comes my lord. [Exit 

Enter Albany 

Cfon. I have been worth the whistle. 

Alb. OGoneril! 

You are oot worth the dust which the rude wind 30 

Blows in your face. I fear your disposition: 
lliat nature, which contemns it origin. 
Cannot be border'd certain in itself; 
She that lierself will sliver and disbranch 
From ker material sap, perforce must wither 35 

And come to deadly use. 

Gem. No more; the text is foolish. 

AJd, Wisdom and goodness to the vile seem vile : 
Filths savour but themselves. What have 3^u done? 
Tigers, not daughters, what have you perform'd? 40 

A faibtr^ and a gracious aged man, 
Whose veverence even the head-lugg'd bear would lick, 
Most barbarous, most degenerate 1 have you madded. 
Couid oijr good brother suffer you to do it? 
A man, a prince, by him so benefited! 45 

If that die heavens do not their visible spirits 
Send «|aiddy down to tame these vile offences. 
It wil come. 

Humanity must perforce prey on itself, 
ILike flunsters of the deep. 

Gan. Milk-liver'd man ! 50 

Tliast ^ear'st a cheek for blows, a head for wrongs : 
Who liast not in thy brows an eye discerning 
Thine lionour from thy suffering; that not know'st 
Fools do those villains pity who are punish'd 
Ere ihey have done their mischief. Where *s thy drum? 
Franoe spreads his banners in our noiseless land, 56 

With iplumed helm thy state begins to threat; 



66 KING IJEAR [Act IV 

Whiles thou, a moral fool, sit'st still, and oriest 
* Alack, Tvhy does he so?* 

AJh, See thyself, devil I 

Proper deformity seems not in the fiend 60 

So horrid as in woman. 

Gon, O vain fool ! 

Alh. Thou changed and self'COver'd thing, for shame, 
Be-monster not thy feature. Were 't my fitness 
To let these hands obey my blood, 

They are apt enough to dislocate and tear ^65 

Thy flesh and bones: howe'er thou art a fiend, 
A woman's shape doth shield thee. 

G<m, Marry, your manhood ! mew I 

Enter a Messenger 

Alh. What news? 

Mess, O, my good lord, the Duke of Cornwall's dead; 
Slain by his servant, going to put out 71 

The other eye of Gloucester. 

Alh, Gloucester's eyes I 

Mess. A servant that he bred, thrill'd with remorse. 
Opposed against the act, bending his sword 
To his great master; who, thereat enraged, 75 

Flew on him, and amongst them fell'd him dead; 
But not without that harmful stroke, which since 
Hath pluck'd him after. 

Alh, This shows you are abovB, 

You justicers, that these our nether crimes 
So speedily can venge I But, O poor Gloucester! 80 

Lost he his other eye? 

Mess, Both, both, my lord. 

This letter, madam, craves a speedy answer; 
'T is from your sister. 

Chn, [Astde] One way I like this well; 

But being widow, and my Gloucester with her, 
May all the building in my fancy pluck 85 

Upon my hateful life: another way. 
The news is not so tart. — I '11 read, and answer. [Exii 

Alh, Where was his son when they did take his eyes? 

Mess, Come with my lady hither. 



Scenes] KING LEAR 67 

Alb, He is not here. 

Mess. No, my good lord; I met him back ag«kL 90 

Alb, Knows he the wickedness? 

Mess, Ay, my good lord; 'twas he inform'd against him; 
And quit the house on purpose, that their punishment 
Might have the freer course. 

Alb, Gloucester, I live 

To thank thee for the love thou show'dst the king, 95 

And to revenge thine eyes. Come hither, friend: 
Tell me what more thou know'st. [Exeunt 



Scene III. The French camp near Dover 
Enter Kent and a Gentleman 

Kent, Why the King of France is so suddenly gone back 
know you the reason? 

Crent, Something he left imperfect in the state, which 
since his coming forth is thought of; which imports to 
the kingdom so much fear and danger, that his personal 
return was most required and necessary. 6 

Kent Who hath he left behind him general? 

Gent, The Marshal of France, Monsieur La Far. 

Kent, Did your letters pierce the queen to any demon- 
stration of grief? 10 

Crent, Ay, sir; she took them, read them in my presence; 
And now and then an ample tear trill'd down 
Her delicate cheek: it seem'd she was a queen 
Over her passion; who, most rebel-like, 
Sought to be king o'er her. 

Kent, O, then it moved her. 15 

Gent Not to a rage: patience and sorrow strove 
Who should express her goodliest. You have seen 
Sunshine and rain at once: her smiles and tears 
Were like, a better way: those happy smilets 
That play'd on her ripe lip seem'd not to know 20 

What guests were in her eyes; which parted theace. 
As pearls from diamonds cfropp'd. In brief, 
Sorrow would be a rarity most beloved^ 
If all could so become it. 



68 KING LEAR [Act IV 

Kent Made she no verbal question? 

Gent. 'Faith, once or twice she heaved the name of 
* father' 25 

Pantingly forth, as if it press'd her heart; ^ 

Cried * Sisters I sisters ! Shame of ladies I sisters I 
Kent! father I sisters I What, i' the storm? i* the night? 
Let pity not be believed I' There she shook 
The holy water from her heavenly eyes, 30 

And clamour moistened: then away she started 
To deal with grief alone. 

Kent It is the stars, 

The stars above us, govern our conditions; 
Else one self mate and mate could not beget 
Such different issues. You spoke not with her since? 35 

Gent No. 

Kent Was this before the king retum'd? 

Gent No, since. 

Kent, Well, sir, the poor distressed Lear *s i' the town; 
Who sometime, in his better tune, remembers 
What we are come about, and by no means 40 

Will yield to see his daughter. 

Crent Why, good sir? 

Kent A sovereign shame so elbows him: his own 
unldndness. 
That stripp'd her from his benediction, tum'd her 
To foreign casualties, gave her dear rights 
To his dog-hearted daughters, these things sting 45 

His mind so venomously, that burning shame 
Detains him from Cordelia. 

Gent Alack, poor gentleman! 

Kent Of Albany's and Cornwall's powers you heard not? 

Gent T is so, they are afoot. 

Kent Well, sir, 1 11 bring you to our master Lear, 50 
And leave you to attend him: some dear cause 
Will in concealment wrap me up awhile; 
When I am known aright, you shall not grieve 
Lending me this acquaintance. I pray you, go 
Along with me. [Exeunt 55 



Scene 4l KING LEAR 



Scene IV. The same, A tent 

Enter^ with drum and colours^ Cordelia, Doctor, and 
Soldier3 

Car, Alack, 'tis he: why, he was met even now 
As mad as the vex'd sea; singing aloud; 
Crown'd with rank fumiter and fiirrow-weeds. 
With hor-docks, hemlock, nettles, cuckoo-flowers, 
Darnel, and all the idle weeds that grow 5 

In our sustaining com. A century send forth; 
Search every acre in the high-grown field. 
And bring. him to our eye. [Exit an Officer,'] What can 

man^s wisdom 
In the restoring his bereaved sense? 
He that helps him take all my outward worth. 10 

Doct There is means, madam: 
Our foster-nurse of nature is repose. 
The which he lacks; that to provoke in him. 
Are many simples operative, whose power 
Will close the eye of anguish. 

Cor. All blest secrets, 15 

All you unpublish'd virtues of the earth. 
Spring with my tears ! be aidant and remediate 
In the good man's distress I Seek, seek for him; 
Lest his ungovem'd rage dissolve the life 
That wants the means to lead it. 

Enter a Messenger 

Mess. News, madam; 20 

The British powers are marching hitherward. 

Cor. Tis known before; our preparation stands 
In expectation of them. O dear father, 
It is diy business that I go about; 

Therefore great France 25 

My mourning and important tears hath pitied. 
No blown ambition doth our arms incite. 
But love, dear love, and our aged father's right: 
Soon may I hear and see him I [Exeunt 

(M906) a 



TO KING LEAR [Act IV 

Scene V. Gloucestet^s castie 
Enter Regan and Oswald 

Reg", But are my brother's powers set forth? 

Osw, Ay, madam. 

Reg-, Himself in person there? 

Osw, Madam, with much ado: 

Your sister is the better soldier. 

Reg-, Lord Edmund spake not with your lord at home? 

Osw. No, madam. 5 

Reg, What might import my sister's letter to him? 

Osw, I know not, lady. 

Reg, 'Faith, he is posted hence on serious matter. 
It was great ignorance, Gloucester's eyes being out, 
To let him live: where he arrives he moves 10 

All hearts against us: Edmund, I think, is gone, 
In pity of his misery, to dispatch 
His nighted life; moreover, to descry 
The strength o* the enemy. 

Osw, I must needs after him, madam, with my letter. 15 

Reg, Our troops set forth to-morrow: stay witli us; 
The ways are dangerous. 

Osw. I may not, madam: 

My lady charged my duty in this business. 

Reg. Why should she write to Edmund? Might not you 
Transport her purposes by word? Belike, 20 

Something— I know not what: I '11 love thee much, 
Let me unseal the letter. 

Osw, Madam, I had rather — 

Reg. I know your lady does not love her husband; 
I am sure of that: and at her late being here 
She g^ve strange oeillades and most speaking looks 25 
To noble Edmund. I know you are of her bosom. 

Osw, I, madam? 

Reg. I speak in understanding; you are, I know 't: 
Therefore I do advise you, take this note: 
My lord is dead; Edmund and I have talk'd; 50 

And more convenient is he for my hand 
Than for your lady's: you may gather more. 



Scene 6] KING LEAR 71 

If you do find him, pray you, give him this; 

And when your mistress hears thus much from you, 

I pray, desire her call her wisdom to her. 35 

So, fere you well. 

If you do chance to hear of that blind traitor, 

Preferment falls on him that cuts him off. 

Osw. Would I could meet him, madam 1 I should show 
What party I do follow. 

Re^, Fare thee well. [Exeunt 40 

Scene VI. Fields near Dover 
Enter Gloucester, and Edgar dressed like a peasant 

Glou. When shall we come to the top of that same hill? 

Edg. You do climb up it now: look, how we labour. 

Ghu. Methinks the ground is even. 

Edg, Horrible steep. 

Hark, do you hear the sea? 

Glou, No, truly. 

Edg, Why, then, your other senses grow imperfect 5 
By your eyes' anguish. 

Glou. So may it be, indeed: 

Methinks thy voice is alter'd; and thou speak'st 
In better phrase and matter than thou didst. 

Edg, You 're much deceived: in nothing am I changed 
But in my garments. 

Glou. Methinks you 're better spoken. 10 

Edg, Come on, sir; here 's the place: stand still. How 
fearful 
And dizzy 't is, to cast one's eyes so low ! 
The crows and choughs that wing the midway air 
Show scarce so gross as beetles: halfway down 
Hangs one that gathers samphire, dreadful tradel 15 

Methinks he seems no bigger than his head: 
The fishermen that walk upon the beach 
Appear like mice; and yond tall anchoring bark, 
Diminish'd to her cock; her cock, a buoy 
Almost too small for sight: the murmuring surge, 20 

That on the unnumber'd idle pebbles chafes, 



72 KING LEAR [Act IV 

Cannot be heard so high. 1 11 look no more, 
Lest my brain turn, and the deficient sight 
Topple down headlong. 

Glau, Set me where you stand. 

Edg-. Give me your hand: you are now within a foot 25 
Of the extreme verge: for all beneath the moon 
Would I not leap upright. 

Ghu. Let go my hand. 

Here, fi-iend, *s another purse; in it a jewel 
Well worth a poor man's taking : fairies and gods 
Prosper it with thee! Go thou farther off; 30 

Bid me farewell, and let me hear thee going. 

jEdg". Now fare you well, good sir. 

Glau. With all my heart 

£dg: Why I do trifle thus with his despair 
Is done to cure it. 

Glou, [Kneeling] O you mighty gods! 
This world I do renounce, and, in your sights, 35 

Shake patiently my great affliction off: 
If I could bear it longer, and not fall 
To quarrel with your great opposeless wills, 
My snuff and loathed part, of nature should 
Bum itself out. If Edgar live, O, bless him I 40 

Now, fellow, fare thee well. [He falls Jorward 

Edg, Gone, sir: farewell. 

And yet I know not how conceit may rob 
The treasury of life, when life itself 
Yields to the theft : had he been where he thought, 
By this had thought been past. Alive or dead? 45 

Ho, you sir! friend! Hear you, sir! speak! 
Thus might he pass indeed: yet he revives. 
What are you, sir? 

Glou, Away, and let me die. 

Edg, Hadst thou been aught but gossamer, feathers, air. 
So many fathom down precipitating, 50 

Thou *dst shiver'd like an ^^^\ but thou dost breathe; 
Hast heavy substance; bleed'st not; speak'st; art soimd. 
Ten masts at each make not the altitude 
Which thou hast perpendicularly fell: 
Thy life *s a miracle. Speak yet again* 55 



Scene 6] KIP^G LEAR 73 

Ghu, But have I MVn, or no? 

Edg-. From the dread summit of this chalky bourn. 
Look up a-height ; the shrill-gorged lark so far 
Cannot be seen or heard: do but look up. 

Ghu, Alack, I have no eyes. 60 

Is wretchedness deprived that benefit, 
To end itself by death? T was yet some comfort. 
When misery could beguile the tyrant's rage, 
And frustrate his proud will. 

Edg', Give me your arm: 

Up: so. How is 't? Feel you your legs? You stand. 65 

Ghu. Too well, too well. 
^ Edg, This b above all strangeness. 

Upon the crown o' the cliff, what thing was that 
Which parted from you? 

Ghu, A poor unfortunate beggar. 

Edg, As I stood here below, methought his eyes 
Were two full moons ; he had a thousand noses, 70 

Horns whelk'd and waved like the enridged sea: 
It was some fiend; therefore, thou happy father. 
Think that the clearest gods, who make them honours 
Of men's impossibilities, have preserved thee. 

Glau, I do remember now: henceforth I '11 bear 75 

Affliction till it do cry out itself 

* Enough, enough ', and die. That thing you speak of» 
I took it for a man; often 'twould say 
*The fiend, the fiend': he led me to that place. 

Edg, Bear free and patient thoughts. But who comes 
here? 80 

Enter Lear, fantastically dressed with wild flowers 

The safer sense will ne'er accommodate 
His master thus. 

Lear, No, they cannot touch me for coining; I am the 
king himself. 
Edg, O thou side-piercing sight I 85 

Lear, Nature 's above art in that respect. There 's your 
press-money. That fellow handles his bow like a crow- 
keeper : draw me a clothier's yard. Look, look, a mouse ! 
Peace, peace; this piece of toasted cheese will do't. 



74 KING LEAR [Act IV 

There 's my gauntlet ; 1 11 prove it on a giant. Bring 
up the brown bills. O, well flown, bird! i' the clout, 
i' the clout : hewgh 1 Give the word. 92 

Edg^, Sweet marjoram. 

Lear, Pass. 

Glou, I know that voice 95 

Lear, Hal Goneril, with a white beard! They flat- 
tered me like a dog; and told me I had white hairs in 
my beard ere the black ones were there. To say * ay ' and 
* no ' to every thing that I said ! — * Ay ' and * no ' too was 
no good divinity. When the rain came to wet me once, 
and the wind to make me chatter; when the thunder 
would not peace at my bidding; there I found 'em, there 
I smelt 'em out. Go to, they are not men^ o' their words : 
they told me I was every thing; 'tis a lie, I am not ague- 
proof. 105 

Glou. The trick of that voice I do well remember: 
Is 't not the king? 

Lear. Ay, every inch a king : 

When I do stare, see how the subject quakes. 
I pardon that man's life. What was thy cause? 
Adultery? no 

Thou shalt not die: die for adultery! No: 
For Gloucester's bastard son 
Was kinder to his father than my daughters. 
Give me an ounce of civet, good apothecary, to sweeten 
my imagination : there 's money for thee. 1 15 

Glou, O, let me kiss that hand ! 

Lear, Let me wipe it first ; it smells of mortality. 

Glou, O ruin'd piece of nature ! This great world 
Shall so wear out to nought. Dost thou know me? 119 

Lear, I remember thine eyes well enough. Dost thou 
squiny at me? No, do thy worst, blind Cupid; I'll not 
love. Read thou this challenge; mark but the penning 
of it. 

Glou, Were all the letters suns, I could not see one. 

Edg, I would not take this from report; it is, 125 

And my heart breaks at it. 

Lear, Read. 

Glou, What, with the case of eyes? 



Scene 6] KING LEAR 75 

Lear, O, ho, are you there with me? No ^es in your 
head, nor no money in your purse? Your eyes are in a 
heavy case, your purse in a light: yet you see how this 
world goes. 132 

Glou. I see it feelingly. 

Lear. What, art mad? A man may see how this world 
goes with no eyes. Look with thine ears : see how yond 
justice rails upon yond simple thief. Hark, in thine ear: 
change places; and, handy-dandy, which is the justice, 
which is the thief? Thou hast seen a £armer's dog bark 
at a beggar? 

Glou, Ay, sir.- 140 

Lear, And the creature run from the cur? There thou 
mightst behold the great image of authority: a dog's 
obeyed in office. 
The usurer hangs the cozener. 

Through tatter'd clothes small vices do appear; 145 

Robes and furr'd gowns hide all. Plate sin with gold, 
And the strong lance of justice hurtless breaks; 
Arm it in rags, a pigmy's straw does pierce it. 
None does offend, none, I say, none; I '11 able 'em: 
Take that of me, my friend, who have the power 150 

To seal the accuser's lips. Get thee glass eyes; 
And, like a scurvy politician, seem 
To see the things thou dost not. Now, now, now, now: 
Pull off my boots : harder, harder : so. 

Edg, O, matter and impertinency mix'd I 155 

Reason in madness ! 

Lear, If thou wilt weep my fortunes, take my eyes. 
I know thee well enough; thy name is Gloucester: 
Thou must be patient ; we came crying hither : 
Thou know'st, the first time that we smell the air, 160 

We wawl and cry. I will preach to thee: mark. 

Glou, Alack, alack the day! 

Lear, When we are born, we cry that we are come 
To this great stage of fools : this' a good block ; 
It were a delicate stratagem, to shoe 165 

A troop of horse with felt : 1 11 put 't in proof; 
And when I have stol'n upon these sons-in-law, 
Then, kill, kill, kUl, kill, kill, killl 



KING LEAR [Act IV 



Enter a Gentleman, with Attendants 

Gent. O, here he is : lay hand upon him. Sir, 
Your most dear daughter — 170 

Lear. No rescue? What, a prisoner? I am even 
The natural fool of fortune. Use me well; 
You shall have ransom. Let me have surgeons ; 
I am cut to the brains. 

Gent. You shall have anything. 

Lear. No seconds? all myself? 175 

Why, this would make a man a man of salt. 
To use his eyes for garden water-pots. 
Ay, and laying autunm's dust 

Gent. Good sir, — 

Lear. I will die bravely, like a smug bridegroom. What ! 
I will be jovial: come, come; I am a king, 180 

My masters, know you that. 

Gent. You are a royal one, and we obey you. 

Lear. Then there's life in't Nay, if you get it, you 
shall get it with running. Sa, sa, sa, sa. 

[Exit running-/ Attendants follow 

Gent. A sight most pitiful in the meanest wretch, 185 
Past speaking of in a king ! Thou hast one daughter, 
Who redeems nature from the general curse 
Which twain have brought her to. 

Edg. Hail, gentle sir. 

Gent. Sir, speed you : what 's your will? 

Edg. Do you hear aught, sir, of a battle toward? 190 

Gent. Most sure and vulgar : every one hears that. 
Which can distinguish sound. 

Edg. But, by your favour, 

How near's the other army? 

Gent. Near and on speedy foot ; the main descry 194 
Stands on the hourly thought. 

Edg. I thank you, sir: that's all. 

Gent. Though that the queen on special cause is here. 
Her army is moved on. 

Edg. I thank you, sir. \Ex%t Gent 

Ghu, You ever-gentle gods, tsdte my breath from me; 



Scenes] KING LEAR 77 

Let not my worser spirit tempt me again 
To die before you please I 

Edg, Well pray you, father. 200 

Glou. Now, good sir, what are you? 

Edg-, A most poor man, made tame to fortune's blows ; 
Who, by the art of known and feeling sorrows. 
Am pregnant to good pity. Grive me your hand, 
1 11 lead you to some biding. 

Glou, Hearty thanks: 205 

The bounty and the benison of heaven 
To boot, and boot ! 

Enter Oswald 

Osw. A proclaimed prize I Most happy I 

That eyeless head of thine was first framed flesh 
To raise my fortunes. Thou old unhappy traitor. 
Briefly thyself remember : the sword is out 210 

That must destroy thee. 

Glou, Now let thy friendly hand 

Put strength enough to 't [Edgar interposes 

Osw, Wherefore, bold peasant, 

Darest thou support a publish'd traitor? Hence; 
Lest that the infection of his fortune take 
Like hold on thee. Let go his arm. 215 

Edg, Chill not let go, zir, without vurther 'casion. 

Osw, Let go, slave, or thou diest I 

Edg, Good gentleman, go your gait, and let poor volk 
pass. An chud ha' bin zwaggered out of my life, 't would 
not ha' bin zo long as 'tis by a vortnight. Nay, come 
not near th' old man; keep out, che vor ye, or ise try 
whether your costard or my hallow be the harder: chill 
be plain with you. 

Osw, Out, dunghill! 224 

Edg, Chill pick your teeth, zir: come; no matter vor 
your foins. [They fight and Edgar knocks him down 

Osw, Slave, thou hast slain me : villain, take my purse : 
If ever thou wilt thrive, bury my body; 
And give the letters which thou flnd'st about me 
To Edmund earl of Gloucester; seek him out 230 

Upon the British party: O, untimely death I [Dies 



78 KING LEAR [Act IV 

Edg. I know thee well: a serviceable villain 
As duteous to the vices of thy mistress 
As badness would desire. 

Glau. What, is he dead? 

Edg-. Sit you down, father; rest you. 235 

Let 's see these pockets : the letters that he speaks of 
May be my friends. He 's dead ; I am only sorry 
He had no other death 's-man. Let us see: 
Leave, gentle wax; and, manners, blame us not : 
To know our enemies' minds, we Id rip their hearts; 240 
Their papers, is more lawful. 

[Reads\ * Let our reciprocal vows be remembered. You 
have many opportunities to cut him off: if your will want 
not, time and place will be fruitfully offered. There is 
nothing done, if he return the conqueror : then am I the 
prisoner, and his bed my gaol ; from the loathed warmth 
whereof deliver me, and supply the place for your labour. 

* Your — wife, so I would say — 

'Affectionate servant, 249 

* GONBRIL.' 

O undistinguished space of woman's will I 

A plot upon her virtuous husband's life; 

And the exchange my brother! Here, in the sands, 

Thee I '11 rake up, the post unsanctified 

Of murderous lechers: and in the mature time 255 

With this ungracious paper strike the sight 

Of the death-practised duke: for him 'tis well 

That of thy death and business I can tell. 

Glou, The king is mad: how stiff is my vile sense, 
That I stand up, and have ingenious feeling 260 

Of my huge sorrows! Better I were distract : 
So should my thoughts be sever'd from my griefs, 
And woes by wrong imaginations lose 
The knowledge of themselves. 

Edg. Give me your hand : 

[Drum afar off 
Far off, methinks, I hear the beaten drum: 265 

Come, father, 1 11 bestow you with a friend. {Exeunt 



Scene 7] KING LEAR 79 

Scene VII. A tent in the French camp. Lear on a bed 
asleep^ soft music playing; Gentleman, and others attending 

Enter Cordelia, Kent, ar^ Doctor 

Cor, O thou good Kent, how shall I live and work, 
To match thy goodness? My life will be too short, 
And every measure fail me. 

Kent, To be acknowledged, madam, is o'erpaid. 
All my reports go with the modest truth; 5 

Nor more nor clipp'd, but so. 

Cor, Be better suited: 

These weeds are memories of those worser hours: 
I prithee, put them off. 

Kent, Pardon me, dear madam; 

Yet to be known shortens my made intent: 
My boon I make it, that you know me not 10 

Till time and I think me^t. 

Cor, Then be 't so, my good lord. \To the Doctor] How 
does the king? 

Doct, Madam, sleeps still. 

Cor, O you kind gods. 
Cure this great breach in his abused nature ! 15 

The untuned and jarring senses, O, wind up 
Of this child-changed father ! 

Doct. So please your majesty 

That we may wake the king: he hath slept long. 

Cor, Be govem'd by your knowledge, and proceed 
r the sway of your own wilL Is he array'd? 20 

Gent, Ay, madam; in the heaviness of his sleep 
We put fresh garments on him. 

Doct, Be by, good madam, when we do awake him 
I doubt not of his temperance. 

Cor, Very well. 

Doct, Please you, draw near. Louder the music there ! 

Cor, O my dear father ! Restoration hang 26 

Thy medicine on my lips; and let this kiss 
Repair those violent harms that my two sisters 
Have in thy reverence made! 

KeTit. Kind and dear princess! 



8o KING LEAR [Act IV 

Cor, Had you not been their father, these white flakes 
Had challenged pity of them. Was this a face 31 

To be opposed against the warring winds? 
To stand against the deep dread-bolted thunder? 
In the most terrible and nimble stroke 
. Of quick, cross lightning? to watch—poor perdu I—p 35 
With this thin helm? Mine enemy's dog, 
Though he had bit me, should have stood that night 
Against my fire ; and wast thou fain, poor father, 
To hovel thee with swine, and rogues forlorn, 
In short and musty straw? Alack, alack I 40 

T is wonder that thy life and wits at once 
Had not concluded all. He wakes; speak to him. 

Doct Madam, do you ; 't is fittest. 

Cor. How does my royal lord? How fares your 
majesty? 

Lear, You do me wrong to take me out o' the grave: 45 
Thou art a soul in bliss; but I am bound 
Upon a wheel of fire, that mine own tears 
Do scald like molten lead. 

Cor, Sir, do you know me? 

Lear, You are a spirit, I know: when did you die? 

Cor, Still, still, far wide! 50 

Doct, He 's scarce awake : let him alone awhile. 

Lear, Where have I been? Where am I? Fair day- 
light? 
I am mightily abused. I should e'en die with pity. 
To see another thus. I know not what to say. 
I will not swear these are my hands : let *s see; 55 

I feel this pin prick. Would I were assured 
Of my condition I 

Cor, O, look upon me, sir, 

And hold your hands in benediction o'er me. 
No, sir, you must not kneel. 

Lear. Prayi do not mock me: 

I am a very foolish fond old man, 60 

Fourscore and upward, not an hour more nor less; 
And, to deal plainly, 
I fear I am not in my perfect mind. 
Methinks I should know vou, and know this man; 



Scene 7] KING LEAR 8i 

Yet I am doubtful: for I am mainly ignorant 65 

What place diis b; and all the skill I have 
Remembers not these garments ; nor I know not 
Where I did lodge last night. Do not laugh at me; 
For, as I am a man, I think this lady 
To be my child Cordelia. 

Car, And so I am, I am. 70 

Lear, Be your tears wet? yes, 'fiedth. I pray, weep not: 
If you have poison for me, I will drink it. 
I know you do not love me; for your sisters 
Have, as I do remember, done me wrong: 
You have some cause, they have not 

Car, No cause, no cause. 

Lear, Am I in France? 

Kent, In your own kingdom, sir. 76 

Lear, Do not abuse me. 

Z>oct Be comforted, good madam: the great rage, 
You see, is ^ll'd in him: and yet it is danger 
To make him even o'er the time he has lost 80 

Desire him to go in ; trouble him no more 
Till further settling. 

Cor, Will 't please your highness, walk? 

Lear, You must bear with me: 

Pray you now, forget and forgive: I am old and foolish. 

[Exeunt all but Kent and Gentleman 

Gent Holds it true, sir, that the Duke of Cornwall was 
so slain? 86 

Kent, Most certain, sir. 

Gent, Who is conductor of his people? 

Kent, As 't is said, the bastard son of Gloucester* 

Gent, They say Edgar, his banished son, Is with the 
Earl of Kent in Germany. 91 

Kent, Report is changeable. Tis time to look about; 
the powers of the kingdom approach apace. 

Gent. The arbitrement is like to be bloody. Fare you 
well, sir. [Exit 95 

Kent, My point and period will be throughly wrought, 
Or well or ill, as this day's battle 's fought \fixii 



83 KING LEAR [Act V 

ACT V 
Scene I. The British camp near D<yver 

Enter with drum and colours Edmund, Regan, 
Gentlemen, and Soldiers. 

Edm. Know of the duke if his last puq)ose hold. 
Or whether since he is advised by aught 
To change the course : he 's full of alteration 
And self-reproving: bring his constant pleasure. 

\To a Gentleman^ who goes out 

Reg, Our sister's man has certainly miscarried. 5 

Edm, T is to be doubted, madam. 

Reg, Now, sweet lord. 

You know the goodness I intend upon you: 
Tell me — but truly— but then speak the truth, 
Do you not love my sister? 

Edm, In honoured love, 

Reg, But have you never found my brother's way 10 
To the forfended place? 

Edm, That thought abuses you. 

Reg, I am doubtful that you have been conjunct 
And bosom'd with her, as far as we call hers. 

Edm. No, by mine honour, madam. 

Reg, I never shall endure her : dear my lord, 15 

Be not familiar with her. 

Edm, Fear me not; 

She and the duke her husband ! 

Enter^ with drum and colours ^ Albany, Goneril, 
and Soldiers. 

Gon, [Aside] I had rather lose the battle than that sister 
Should loosen him and me. 

Alb, Our very loving sister, well be-met. 20 

Sir, this I hear; the king is come to his daughter, 
With others whom the rigour of our state 
Forced to cry out Where I could not be honest, 
I never yet was valiant: for this business. 
It toucheth us, as France invades our land, 25 



Scene z] KING LEAR 83 

Not bolds the king, with others, whom, I fear, 
Most just and heavy causes make oppose. 

Edm. Sir, you speak nobly. 

Reg. Why is this reasoned? 

Gon, Combine together 'gainst the enemy; 
For these domestic and particular broils 30 

Are not the question here. 

Alb Let 's then determine 

With the ancient of war on our proceedings. 

Edm, I shall attend you presently at your tent 

Reg, Sister, you '11 go with us? 

Gan, No. 35 

Reg, T is most convenient; pray you, go with us. 

Gan. [Aside] O, ho, I know the riddle. — I will go. 

As they are going out^ enter Edgar disguised 

Edg, If e'er your grace had speech with man so poor. 
Hear me one word. 

Alb, I H overtake you. Speak. 

[Exeunt all but Albany and Edgar 

Edg, Before you fight the battle, ope this letter. 40 

If you have victory, let the trumpet sound 
For him that brought it: wretched though I seem, 
I can produce a champion that will prove 
What is avouched there. If you miscarry. 
Your business of the world hath so an end, 45 

And machination ceases. Fortune love you I 

Alb. Stay till I have read the letter. 

Edg. I was forbid it. 

When time shall serve, let but the herald cry. 
And 1 11 appear again. 

Alb. Why, fare thee well: I will o'erlook thy paper. 50 

[Exit Edgar 

Re-enter Edmund 

Edm. The enemy 's in view; draw up your powers. 
Here is the guess of their true strength and forces 
By diligent discovery; but your haste 
Is now urged on you. 

Alb. We will greet the time. [Exit 



84 KING LEAR [Act V 

Edm. To both these sisters have I sworn my love; 55 
Each jealous of the other, as the stung 
Are of the adder. Which of them shall I take? 
Both? one? or neither? Neither can be enjoy'd 
If both remain alive : to take the widow 
Exasperates, makes mad her sister Goneril; 60 

And hardly shall I carry out my side, 
Her husband being alive. Now then we 11 use 
His countenance for the battle; which being done. 
Let her who would be rid of him devise 
His speedy taking off. As for the mercy 65 

Which he intends to Lear and to Cordelia, 
The battle done, and they within our power. 
Shall never see his pardon; for my state 
Stands on me to defend, not to debate. [Exit 



ScBNB IL A field between the two camps 

Alarum within. Enter ^ with drum and colours ^ Lear, 
Cordelia, and Soldiers, over the stage; and exeunt, 

Enter Edgar and Gloucester 

Edg-. Here, father, take the shadow of this tree 
For your good host ; pray that the right may thrive : 
If ever I return to you again, 
I '11 bring you comfort 

Glou. Grace go with )rou, sir! 

[ExU Edgar 

Alarum and retreat within. Re-enter Edgar 

Edg, Away, old man ; give me thy hand ; away I 5 

King Lear hath lost, he and his daughter ta'en: 
Give me thy hand; come on. 

Glou, No farther, sir; a man may rot even here. 

Edg, What, in ill thoughts again? Men must endure 
Their going hence, even as their coming hither: 10 

Ripeness is all : come on. 

Glou, And that *s true too. [Exeunt 



Scene 3] KING LEAR 85 

Scene III. The British camp near Dover 

Enter^ in conquest^ with drum and colours, 'Evuusd; 
Ijear and CoRDBUA, prisoners; Captain, Soldiers, <S^•£:• 

Edm, Some officers take them away: good guard. 
Until their greater pleasures first be known 
That are to censure them. 

Cor. We are not the first 

Who, with best meaning, have incurred the worst. 
For thee, oppressed king, am I cast down; 5 

Myself could else out-frown felse fortune's Grown. 
Shall we not see these daughters and these sbters? 

Lear. No, no, no, no I Come, let 's away to prison: 
We two alone will sing like birds i' the cage: 
When thou dost ask me blessing, 1 11 kneel down, 10 

And ask of thee forgiveness: so we 11 Jive, 
And pray, and sing, and tell old tales, and laugh 
At gilded butterflies, and hear poor rogues 
Talk of court news; and we 11 talk with them too. 
Who loses and who wins; who 's in, who 's out; 15 

And take upon 's the mystery of things, 
As if we were God's spies : and we 11 wear out. 
In a wall'd prison, packs and sects of great ones. 
That ebb and flow by the moon. 

Edm. Take them away. 

Lear. Upon such sacrifices, my Cordelia, 20 

The gods themselves throw incense. Have I caught thee? 
He that parts us shall bring a brand from heaven, 
And fire us hence like foxes. Wipe thine eyes ; 
The good-years shall devour them, flesh and fell. 
Ere they shall make us weep: we 11 see 'em starve first. 25 
Come. [Exeunt Lear and Cordelia, guarded 

Edm. Come hither, captain; hark. 
Take thou this note [giving a paper]; go follow them to 

prison: 
One step I have advanced thee; if thou dost 
As this instructs thee, thou dost make thy way 
To noble fortunes : know thou this, that men 30 

Are as the time is : to be tender-minded 

(M906) . 



86 KING LEAR [Act V 

Does not become a sword : thy great employment 
Will not bear question: either say thou *lt do 't, 
Or thrive by other means. 

CapL I '11 do 't, my lord. 

Edm. About it ; and write happy when thou hast done. 
Mark, I say, instantly; and cany it so 36 

As I have set it down. 

Capt I cannot draw a cart, nor eat dried oats ; 
If it be man's work, I *11 do 't. \Exit 

Flourish, Enter Albany, Goneril, Rbgan, another 
Captain, and Soldiers 

Alb, Sir, you have shown to-day your valiant strain, 40 
And fortune led you well: you have the captives 
That were the opposites of this day's strife: 
We do require them of you, so to use them 
As we shall find their merits and our safety 
May equally determine. 

Edm, Sir, I thought it fit 45 

To send the old and miserable king 
To some retention and appointed guard; 
Whose age has charms in it, whose title more» 
To pluck the common bosom on his side. 
And turn our impress'd lances in our eyes 50 

Which do command them. With him I sent the queen; 
My reason all the same; and they are ready 
To-morrow, or at further space, to appear 
Where you shall hold your session. At this time 
We sweat and bleed : the friend hath lost his friend ; 5$ 
And the best quarrels, in the heat, are cursed 
By those that feel their sharpness : 
The question of Cordelia and her father 
Requires a fitter place. 

Alb, Sir, by your patience, 

I hold you but a subject of this war, 60 

Not as a brother. 

Reg, That 's as we list to grace him. 

Methinks our pleasure might have been demanded. 
Ere you had spoke so far. He led our powers; 
Bore the commission of my place and person; 



Scenes] KING LEAR 87 

The which immediacy may well stand up, 65 

And call itself your brother. 

Gon, Not so hot : 

In his own grace he doth exalt himself, 
More than in your addition. 

Reg, In my rights. 

By me invested, he compeers the best. 

Gon, That were the most, if he should husband you. 70 

Reg, Jesters do oft prove prophets. 

Gon, Holla, holla! 

That eye that told you so look'd but a-squint. 

Reg, Lady, I am not well; else I should answer 
From a full-flowing stomach. General, 
Take thou my soldiers, prisoners, patrimony ; 75 

Dispose of them, of me; the walls are thine: 
Witness the world, that I create thee here 
My lord and master. 

Gon, Mean you to enjoy him? 

Alb, The let-alone lies not in your good will. 

Edm, Nor in thine, lord. 

Alb, Half-blooded fellow, yes. 80 

Reg, [To Edmund] Let the drum strike, and prove my 
title thine. 

Aib, Stay yet; hear reason. Edmund, I arrest thee 
On capital treason ; and, in thine attaint. 
This gilded serpent [pointing to Goneril\, For your claim, 

fair sister, 
I bar it in the interest of my wife ; 85 

T is she is sub-contracted to this lord. 
And I, her husband, contradict your bans. 
If you will marry, make your loves to me, 
My lady is bespoke. 

Gon, An interlude I 

Alb, Thou art arm'd, Gloucester : let the trumpet sound : 
If none appear to prove upon thy head 91 

Thy heinous, manifest, and many treasons, 
There is my pledge [throwing down a glove]; 1 11 prove it 

on thy heart. 
Ere I taste bread, thou art in nothing less 
Than I have here proclaimed thee. 



88 KING LEAR [Act V 

Reg, Sick, O, sick! 95 

Gon, \Aside\ If not, 1 11 ne'er trust medicine. 

Edm. There *s my exchange \throwing down a gUyve] : 
what in the world he is 
That names me traitor, villain-like he lies : 
Call by thy trumpet : he that dares approach, 
On him, on you, who not? I will maintain 100 

My truth and honour firmly. 

Alb. A herald, ho I 

Edtn, A herald, ho, a herald ! 

Alb. Trust to thy single virtue ; for thy soldiers, 
All levied in my name, have in my name 
Took their discharge. 

Reg. My sickness grows upon me. 105 

Alb. She is not well; convey her to my tent 

[Exii Regan^ led 

Enter a Herald 

Come hither, herald, — Let the trumpet sound, — 
And read out this. 

Capt, Sound trumpet I \A trumpet sounds 109 

Her. \Re€uls\ * If any man of quality or degree within 
the lists of the army will maintain upon Edmund, sup- 
posed Earl of Gloucester, that he is a manifold traitor, let 
him appear by the third sound of the trumpet : he is bold 
in his defence.' 
Edm. Sound! [Eirst trumpet 115 

Ifer. Again ! [Second trumpet 

Her. Again! [Third trumpet 

[Trumpet answers within 

Enter Edgar, at the third sounds armedt with a 
trumpet before him 

Alb. Ask him his purposes, why he appears 
Upon this call o' the trumpet. 

Her. What are you? 

Your name, your quality? and why you answer 120 

This present summons? 

Edg. Know, my name is lost; 

By treason's tooth bare-gnawn and canker-bit: 



Scenes] KING LEAR S9 

Yet am I noble as the adversary 
I come to cope. 

Alh, Which is that adversary? 

Edg. What 's he that speaks for Edmund Earl of Glou- 
cester? 125 

Edm, Himself: what say'st thou to him? 

Edg, Draw thy sword, 

That, if my speech offend a noble heart, 
Thy arm may do thee justice : here is mine. 
Behold, it is the privilege of mine honours. 
My oath, and my profession: I protest, 130 

Maugre thy strength, youth, place, and eminence, 
Despite thy victor sword and fire-new fortune, 
Thy valour and thy heart, thou art a traitor; 
False to thy gods, thy brotfier, and thy father; 
Conspirant 'gainst this high-illustrious prince ; 135 

And, from the extremest upward of thy head 
To the descent and dust below thy foot, 
A most toad-spotted traitor. Say thou * No ', 
This sword, this arm, and my best spirits, are bent 
To prove upon thy heart, whereto I speak, 140 

Thou liest. 

Edm, In wisdom I should ask thy name ; 
But, since thy outside looks so fair and warlike, 
And that thy tongue some say of breeding breathes. 
What safe and nicely I might well delay 
By rule of knighthood, I disdain and spurn : 145 

Back do I toss these treasons to thy head ; 
With the hell-hated lie overwhelm tJiy heart ; 
Which, for they yet glance by and scarcely bruise, 
This sword of mine shall give them instant way, 
Where they shall rest for ever. Trumpets, speak ! 150 
\Alarums, They fight, Edmund falls 

Alb, Save him, save him! 

Gon, This is practice, Gloucester: 

By the law of arms thou wast not bound to answer 
An unknown opposite; thou art not vanquished, 
But cozen'd and beguiled. 

Alb. Shut your mouth, dame. 

Or with this paper shall I stop it Hold, sir; 155 



90 KING LEAR [Act V 

Thou worse than any name, read thine own evil: 
No tearing, lady; I perceive you know it. 

[Gives the letter to Edmund 

Gon, Say, if I do, the laws are mine, not thine: 
Who can arraign me for 't? 

Alb, Most monstrous I oh I 

Know*st thou this paper? 

Gon, Ask me not what I know. \ExU 

Alb, Go after her: she 's desperate; govern her. i6i 

Edm, What you have charged me with; that have I done; 
And more, much more; the time will bring it out: 
Tis past, and so am I. But what art thou 
That hast this fortune on me? If thou 'rt noble, 165 

I do forgive thee. 

Edg, Let 's exchange charity. 

I am no less in blood than thou art, Edmund; 
If more, the more thou hast wrong'd me. 
My name is Edgar, and thy father's son. 
The gods are just, and of our pleasant vices 170 

Make instruments to plague us: 
The dark and vicious place where thee he got 
Cost him his eyes. 

Edm, Thou hast spoken right, 't is true; 

The wheel is come full circle; I am here. 

Alb, Methought thy very gait did prophesy 175 

A royal nobleness: I must embrace thee: 
Let sorrow split my heart, if ever I 
Did hate thee or thy father! 

Edg, Worthy prince, I know 't 

Alb, Where have you hid yourself? 
How have you known the miseries of your father? 180 

Edg, By nursing them, my lord. List a brief tale; 
And when 't is told, O, that my heart would burst I 
The bloody proclamation to escape. 
That followed me so near, — O, our lives' sweetness ! 
That we the pain of death would hourly die 185 

Rather than die at once! — taught me to shift 
Into a madman's rags; to assume a semblance 
That very dogs disdain'd: and in this habit 
Met I my father with his bleeding rings, 



Scenes] KING LEAR 91 

Their precious stones new lost; became his guide, 90 

Led him, begg*d for him, saved him from despair; 

Never, — O fault ! — reveal'd myself unto him, 

Until some half-hour past, when I was arm'd: 

Not sure, though hoping, of this good success, 

I ask'd his blessing, and from first to last 195 

Told him my pilgrimage: but his flaw'd heart, — 

Alack, too weak the conflict to support I — 

Twixt two extremes of passion, joy and grief, 

Burst smilingly. 

Edm, This speech of yours hath moved me. 

And shall perchance do good: but speak you on; 200 

You look as you had something more to say. 

Alb, If there be more, more woeful, hold it in; 
For I am almost ready to dissolve, 
Hearing of this. 

Edg, This would have seem d a period 

To such as love not sorrow; but another, 205 

To amplify too much, would make much more. 
And top extremity. 

Whilst I was big in clamour came there in a man. 
Who, having seen me in my worst estate, 
Shunn'd my abhorr'd society; but then, finding 210 

Who 'twas that so endured, with his strong arms 
He fastened on my neck, and bellow'd out 
As he 'Id burst heaven; threw him on my father; 
Told the most piteous tale of Lear and him 
That ever ear received: which in recounting 215 

His grief grew puissant, and the strings of life 
Began to crack: twice then the trumpets sounded. 
And there I left him tranced. 

Alb, But who was this? 

Edg. Kent, sir, the banish 'd Kent; who in disguise 
Follow'd his enemy king, and did him service 220 

Improper for a slave. 

Enter a Gentleman, with a bloody knife 

Gent, Help, help, O, help ! 

Edj^. What kind of help? 

AUf. Speak, man. 



92 KING LEAR fAct V 

Edg. What means that bloody knife? 

Gent Tis hot, it smokes; 

It came even from the heart of— O, she 's dead I 

Alh, Who dead? speak, man. 225 

Gent Your lady, sir, your lady: and her sister 
By her is poisoned; she hath confessed it. 

Edm, I was contracted to them both: all three 
Now marry in an instant. 

Edg. Here comes Kent. 

Alh, Produce their bodies, be they alive or dead: 230 
This judgment of the heavens, that makes us tremble. 
Touches us not with pity. \Ex%t GenUetnan 

Enter Kent 

O, is this he? 
The time will not allow the compliment 
Which very manners urges. 

Kent. I am come 

To bid my king and master aye good night* 235 

Is he not here? 

Alb. Great thing of us forgot ! 

Speak, Edmund, where 's the king? and where 's Cordelia? 
See'st thou this object, Kent? 

\The bodies of Goneril and Regan are brought m 

Kent Alack, why thus? 

Edm. Yet Edmund was beloved: 

The one the other poison'd for my sake, 240 

And after slew herself. 

Alb. Even so. Cover their £Eices. 

Edm. I pant for life: some good I mean to do. 
Despite of mine own nature. Quickly send. 
Be brief in it, to the castle; for my writ 245 

Is on the life of Lear and on Cordelia: 
Nay, send in time. 

Alb. Run, run, O, run ! 

Edg. To who, my lord? Who hath the office? send 
Thy token of reprieve. 

Edm. Well thought on: take my sword, 250 

Give it the captain. 

Ali. Haste thee for thy life. [Exit E4gur 



Scenes] KING LEAR 93 

Edm. He hath commission from thy wife and me 
To hang Cordelia in the prison, and 
To lay the blame upon her own despair, 
That she fordid herself. 255 

Alb, The gods defend her ! Bear him hence awhile. 

[Edmund is borne off 

Re-enter Lear, with Cordelia dectd in his arms; 
Edgar, Captain, and others following- 

Lear. Howl, howl, howl, howl! O, you are men of 
stones: 
Had I your tongues and eyes, I Id use them so 
That heaven's vault should crack. She 's gone for ever! 
I know when one is dead, and when one lives; a6o 

She 's dead as earth. Lend me a looking-glass; 
If that her breath will mbt or stain the stone. 
Why, then she lives. 

Kent Is this the promised end? 

Edg, Or image of that horror? 

Alb. Fall, and cease I 

Lear, This feather stirs: she lives! if it be so, 265 

It is a chance which does redeem all sorrows 
That ever I have felt 

Kent, [Kneeling] O my good master ! 

Lear, Prithee, away. 

Edg, rr is noble Kent, your friend. 

Lear, A plague upon you, murderers, traitors all ! 
I might have saved her; now she 's gone for ever! 270 

Cordelia, Cordelia ! stay a little. Ha ! 
What is 't thou say'st? Her voice was ever soft. 
Gentle, and low, an excellent thing in woman. 
I kill'd the slave that was a-hanging thee. 

Cafit, T b true, my lords, he did. 

Lear. Did I not, fellow? 

I have seen the day, with my good biting falchion 276 

I would have made them skip: I am old now, 
And these same crosses spoil me. Who are you? 
Mine eyes are not o' the best: 1 11 tell you straight. 

Kent. If fortune brag of two she loved and hated, 280 
One of them we behold. 



94 KING LEAR [Act V 

Lear. This is a dull sight Are you not Kent? 

Kent The same, 

Your servant Kent. Where is your servant Caius? 

Lear. He 's a good fellow, I can tell you that; 
He '11 strike, and quickly too: he 's dead and rotten. 285 

Kent. No, my good lord; I am the very man, — 

Lear. I '11 see that straight. 

Kent That, from your first of difference and decay. 
Have foUow'd your sad steps. 

Lear. You are welcome hither. 

Kent Nor no man else: all 's cheerless, dark, and deadly. 
Your eldest daughters have fordone themselves, 291 

And desperately are dead. 

Lear. Ay, so I think. 

Alb. He knows not what he says: and vain it is 
That we present us to him. 

Edg. Very bootless. 

Enter a Captain 

Capt Edmund is dead, my lord. 

Alb. That's but a trifle here. 

You lords and noble friends, know our intent. 296 

What comfort to this great decay may come 
Shall be applied: for us, we will resign, 
During the life of this old majesty. 

To him our absolute power: \To Edgar and Kent] you, to 
your rights; 300 

^^th boot, and such addition as your honours 
Have more than merited. All friends shall taste 
The wages of their virtue, and all foes 
The cup of their deservings. O, see, see ! 

Lear. And my poor fool is hang'dl No, no, no life I 30$ 
Why should a dog, a horse, a rat, have life. 
And thou no breath at all? Thou 'It come no more. 
Never, never, never, never, never! 
Pray you, undo this button: thank you, sin 
Do you see this? Look on her, look, her lips, 31c 

Look there, look there I [Dies 

Edg. He faints I My lord, my lord ! 

Kent Break, heart; I prithee, break I 



Scenes] KING LEAR 95 

Edg, Look up, my lord. 

Kent, Vex not his ghost: O, let him pass! he hates him 
much 
That would upon the rack of this tough world 
Stretch him out longer. 

Edg, He is gone, indeed. 315 

KenL The wonder is, he hath endured so long: 
He hut usurp'd his life. 

Alh, Bear them from hence. Our present business 
Is general woe. [7b Kent and Edgar\ Friends of my 

soul, you twain 
Rule in this realm, and the gored state sustain. 320 

Kent I have a journey, sir, shortly to go; 
My master calls me, I must hot say no. 

Edg. The weight of this sad time we must obey; 
Speak what we feel, not what we ought to say. 
The oldest hath borne most: we that are young 325 

Shall never see so much, nor live so long. 

[Exeunt, with a dead march 



NOTES 



Abbott Abbott's Shakespearian Grammar, 

KeUner Kellner's Hutorical OntltMe* o/Enf^itk SyntoM, 

O. K Old English (Anglo-Saxoo). 

M. £ Middle English. 

£. E Elizabethan F-ngH^. 

Mod. £. Modom English. 



I>ramati8 Personse. This list is not in the Quartos (1608) 
or Folios (1623, &c.). It was first given by Rowe (1709). 

The division into acts and scenes is not marked in the 
Quartos. 

Act I— Scene 1 

The first scene of Kit^ Lear is of unusual importance. It 
both enacts the events on which the whole play is founded 
and brings out prominently the characters of all the principal 
actors. As a general rule the first scene is confined to giving 
information necessary for the understanding of the story; or 
it may, as in Macbeth^ symbolize the drama. But in King Lear 
we are introduced at once, without any preparation, to the 
circumstance on which the story turns. The play as a whole 
is the representation of the effects of its opening incidents. 
Groethe considered this scene ''irrational" in its want of 
preparation. 

z. affected, had affection for, favoured: the common mean- 
ing in Shakespeare. Cf. Twelfth Nighty ii. 5. 28, "Maria 
once told me she did affect me ' . 

5. equalities are so weighed, &c. ; their shares are so 
balanced that close scrutiny will not show one to be better 
than the other. For curiosity see Glossary. 

zo. brazed, hardened. Cf. ' brazen-faced '• 

12. proper, handsome : as frequently in £. E. 

13. some year, a year or so, about a year. See i« 2. 5. 
24. deserving, i,e, to be better known by you. 

97 



98 KING LEAR [Act I 

2$, out, abroad, in foreign lands. Cf. Tvfo Gentlemen of 
Verona^ i. 3. 7, ** Put forth their sons to seek preferment out", 

29. our darker purpose, our more secret design. Lear 
makes a full statement of what is already known by Kent 
and Gloucester. 

31. fast intent, fixed intention: s3monymous with 'constant 
will ' in 1. 36. 
33-38. while we . • . now. Omitted in the Quartos. 

46. challenge, claim as due: ''where there are both the 
claims of nature {i,e, of birth) and merit "• Cf. iv. 7. 31. 

48. wield the matter, express. 

57. shadowy, shady. 

62. self, ue, same. This adjectival use of ' self, which is a 
survival from O. £., was still common in Shakespeare's time. 
Cf. iv. 3. 34. 

64. names my very deed of love, states exactly my love, 
expresses my love in very deed. 

67. the most precious square of sense, the most exquisitely 
sensitive part of our nature. 

68. felicitate, made happy. 

Regan's protestations are as forced as Goneril's. ^ Her 
stilted phraseology betokens her insincerity. It is in ominous 
contrast to the simplicity of all that Cordelia can bring herself 
to say. 

71. more ponderous. So the Folios. The Quartos read 
more richer. The double coniparative and superlative (e,g, 1. 
210) were commonly used in E. E. to give emphasis. 

74. validity, value, worth; not in the modem sense of 'good 
title'. 

76. Although the last, not least. This phrase occurs also 
m Julius Oesary iii. i. 189, "Though last, not least in love"; 
and there are several other instances of it in Elizabethan 
literature. 

The Folios read "Our last and least", which is preferred 
by some editors; while the Quartos have "Although the last, 
not least in our dear love' , but omit from to whose young 
love to interess'd. The usual reading of this passage is 
therefore founded on both texts. 

77. milk ; referring to the rich pasture land of Burgundy. 

78. interess'd. See Glossary. 

83. Nothing will come of nothing. Cf. i. 4. 125, and the 
proverb. Ex nihilo nihil fit. 



Scene i] NOTES 99 

86. bond, bounden duty, obligaUon. 

38. Good my lord, a common form of traasposition when 
the possessive is unemphatic. Cf. L 113 and iii. 2. 56. The 
transposition occurs most commonly when the address begins 
a sentence: contrast ii. i. 109, iv. 2. 70 and 90. 

93. all, exclusively, only. So also 1. 97. 

zoo. All that Cordelia says has the sincerity and abrupt 
simplicity inevitable on beings g^oaded to give expression to 
feehngs too heart-felt for words. It has been remarked by 
some critics that Cordelia's conduct bears traces in its tactless 
obstinacy of her father's headstrong nature. Coleridge, for 
instance, says: ''There is something of disgust at the ruthless 
hypocrisy of her sisters, and some little faulty admixture of 
pride and sullenness in Cordelia's 'Nothing'; and her tone 
is well contrived, indeed, to lessen the glaring absurdity of 
Lear's conduct". But the prevailing note of her character 
is simplicity and truth. She felt so deeply that she was un- 
able to frame a formal statement of her love for her father, 
and she was the less able to do so from her abhorrence of her 
sisters' rank insincerity. 

zoi. Wounded vanity is the cause of Lear's anger. He had 
already determined on a division of his kingdom among his 
three daughters. He says definitely, on his very entrance, 
"we have divided in three our kingdom", and Kent and 
Gloucester have already discussed two of the shares. But that 
his vanity may be ministered unto he wishes to hear the pro- 
fessions of his daughters' love. "The trial is but a trick," 
says Coleridge; "the grossness of the old king's rage is in 
part the naturai result of a silly trick suddenly and most un- 
expectedly baffled and disappointed." 

Z03. Hecate, the goddess in classical mythology of enchant- 
ments and sorcery. In the Middle Ages she was regarded as 
the queen of witches. Cf. Macbethy ii. i. 52 and iii. 5. The 
wora is pronounced as a dissyllable in Shakespeare. 

107, property, equivalent to 'identity'. Ci, proper^ iv. 2. 60. 

zio. generation, generally said to mean 'offspring', as in 
the phrase "generation of vipers", 5. Matthew^ iii. 7, &c. It 
is plausibly suggested by Mr. W. J. Craig, however, that gen^ 
eration may here mean 'parents', as progeny does in CoriO' 
lanusy i. 8. 12. "Though Purchas in his Pilgrimes has a 
curious passage mentioning different kinds of cannibalism, he 
does not mention eating of children by their parents, nor do 
I know any reference to it. On the other hand, Herodotus 
tells us that the Sc3rthians ate their aged and impotent rela- 
tions, and Chapman in Byron's Tragedy^ iv. i, has the following 



100 KING LEAR [Act I 

passage : ' to teach. . . . The Scythians to inter not eat their 
parents '." 

zz6, 117. to set my rest On her kind nursery. This appears 
to have a double meaning. 'To set one's rest' is a phrase used 
in the game of primero, meaning ' to stake all upon the cards 
in one's hand ', and hence it came to mean generally to stake 
one's all. To set my rest on her hind nursery would therefore 
mean *to rely absolutely on her care'. But it is probable 
that Shakespeare had the simpler interpretation also in view, 
viz. 'to find rest for my old age with her'. There is a similar 
usage in Romeo and Juliets, v. 3. no, " O here Will I set up my 
everlasting rest"; and in this the phrase cannot well have the 
first meaning exclusively. 

117. nursery, nursing. 

Hence, and avoid my sight! Addressed to Cordelia. 

Z2Z. digest. See Glossary. 

122. I,e, Let her pride find her a husband, as she won't have 
a dowry to do so. 

124. effects, signs, manifestations. Cf. ii. 4. 176. 

Z29. additions, titles, as commonly in Shakespeare. Cfl ii. 
2. 21 and V. 3. 68. 

Z36. make from, get out of the way of. 

137. the fork, the barbed arrow-head. 

138. << Almost the first burst of that noble tide of passion 
which runs through the play is in the remonstrance of Kent 
to his royal master on the injustice of his sentence against his 
youngest daughter: 'Be Kent unmannerly, when Lear is mad!' 
This manly plainness, which draws down on him the displea* 
sure of the unadvised king, is worthy of the fidelity with which 
he adheres to his fallen fortunes " (Hazlitt). 

Z42. Reverse thy doom is the reading of the Quartos; the 
Folios have * Reserve thy state'. 

144. answer my life my judgement, let my life answer for 
my iudgtnent. 

152. blank, literally the white centre of a target. 

154. swear'st, adjurest, swear^st by. For the omission of 
the preposition cf. ii. 2. 76, and see Abbott, § 200. 

z66. our potency made good, our royal authority being 
maintained. 

"Kent's opposition . . . displays Lear's moral incapability 
of resigning the sovereign power in the very act of disposing 
of it "(Coleridge). 



Scene i] NOTES loi 

z68. diseases, discomforts, absence of ease. 

Z78. approve, justify, confirm, as commonly in E. E. Cf. 
iL 2. 154, and ii. 4. 180. 

z8a. Here's France and Burgundy. For the common 
Shakespearian use of a singular verb preceding a plural sub- 
ject, see Abbott, § 335. 

Z84, 185. you who . . . Hath. A singular verb often follows 
a relative whose antecedent is plural. Cf. stirs, ii. 4. 271, and 
see Abbott, § 247. 

zgo. 80, ue. 'dear', with the meaning 'of high price'. 

zg2. that little seeming substance. A difficult phrase. 
Johnson takes 'seeming.' in the sense of 'beautiful', 'little 
seeming' being thus equivalent to 'uglv'; Steevens and 
Schmidt give it the sense of 'specious'; wnile Wright under- 
stands it to mean * in appearance '. The second interpretation 
is the best. There appears to be little point in " that substance 
which is but little in appearance ", and Johnson's explanation 
is forced. 

Z94. like, please, as commonly in E. E. Cf. ii. 2. 84. 

196. owes, possesses. See Glossary. 

200. makes not up, does not decide. 'There is no choice 
on such condition^.' 

203. make such a stray, stray so far. 

204. To match. For the omission of as, see Abbott, § 281, 
and cf. 1. 211. 

beseech, i,e* I beseech. "The Elizabethan authors 
objected to scarcely any ellipsis, provided the deficiency could 
be easily supplied from the context." See Abbott, §§ 399-401. 
Cf. ii. 4. 41 and v. i. 68. 

aog. argument, theme, subject; as commonly in E.E. 

2Z4. monsters it, makes it monstrous. A similar use 
occurs in Coriolanus, ii. 2. 81, "idly sit To hear my nothings 
monster'd ". 

225. still-soliciting, ever-begging. Cf. i. 4. 322, ii. 4. 102, 
and Tempest, i. 2. 229, "the still-vex'd Bermoothes". 

333. regards, considerations. Cf. 1. 242. 

234. the entire point, the sole consideration, the object of 
pure love. 

244, &c. France's tender declaration appears the more beau- 
tiful by contrast with the prosaic selfish remarks of his rival, 
who has amply merited Cordelia's " Peace be with Burgundy!" 

252. waterish, well-watered : used in contempt. 

(M906) I 



I02 KING LEAR [Act I 

253. unprized, beyond price. ** The suffix -ed in past parti- 
ciples had in £. £. g'one far to acquire the sense of ' what may 
be done' in addition to that of * what has been done'. For the 
most part this heig'htened meaning* occurs in combination with 
a negative prefix" (Herford). Cf. untentedy u 4. 291 ; unnum- 
heredy iv. 6. 21; and undistinguish' d^ iv. 6. 251. Unpriced tmy^ 
however, be used here in the simple sense of ' not prized '. 

255. here . . . where, used as nouns. 

262. Cordelia from the first has seen throug-h her sisters' 
deceit; but pity for her father, despite the wrong- he has done 
her, at last forces her to speak plainly. Note how she has 
g^dually worked herself up to this declaration. 

The jewels of our father, in apposition with *you'. 

with wash'd eyes, i,e, with tears. 

266. professed, full of professions. For this active sense of 
the past participle, cf. better spoken^ iv. 6. 10, and see Kellner, 
§408. 

268. prefer, recommend, direct: as commonly in Shakespeare. 

270. As Hazlitt remarks, the true character of the two 
eldest daughters, who have not spoken since the very begin- 
ning of the love test, breaks out in Regan's answer to Cor- 
delia, "their hatred of advice being- in proportion to their 
determination to do wrong, and to their hypocritical preten- 
sions to do right ". But most striking- of all is Goneril's odious 
self-rig-hteousness in tellings her sister "You have obedience 
scanted ". 

272. At, used in statements of price or value: hence ' as an 
alms of fortune'. 

273. This line presents some difficulty. It is best rendered 
thus, *And well deserve that absence of affection from your 
father which you have shown towards him '. It is possible, 
however, to take want as referring specifically to the dowry, 
and in this case, as Wright says, the want that you have wanted 
would be an instance of a verb and its cognate accusative. 

274. plaited. See Glossary. 

277, &c. The closing* dialogue of this scene shows Goneril 
to be the stronger and more assertive of the two sisters. It 
is she who broaches the discussion of their position, and de- 
clares, when Regan purposes merely to "think" on their 
policy, that they must strike while the iron is hot. But the 
dialogue is also of considerable importance in the structure of 
the play, as it serves to prepare us for Lear's fate. The very 
waywardness to which they owe their fortunes they make a 
reason for their treacherous design to deprive him of authority. 
Lear's faults, it appears, are not due to senility, though it has 



Scene 2] NOTES 103 

aggravated them, for he **hath ever but slenderly known him- 
self", and ''the best and soundest years of his life have been 
but rash "• 

Note the chang-e from verse to prose. We pass with it from 
the higher plane of passion to underhand scheming. 

285. grossly, plainly, evidently. 

290. long-engraifed. See Glossary. 

293. like, likely. Cf. iv. 2. 19. 

298. offend. See Glossary. 

Scene 2 

In the second scene we turn to the minor web of the play, 
the Gloucester story. It has already been indicated by the 
opening conversation of the previous scene. This underplot 
is in striking parallelism with the main story, and each in turn 
acts as a foil to the other. See Introduction (4). 

I. Thou, nature, art my goddess, as he is a natural son. 

3. Stand in the plague of custom, be subject to the injustice 
of custom. 

4. curiosity, scruples. See Glossary. 

6. Lag of, later than. 

8. generous, used in the obsolete sense of 'gallant', 'noble', 
* natural to one of noble birth or spirit'. 

z6. top the. The commonly accepted emendation of the old 
reading to the. It is supported by several other passages in 
Shakespeare, e,g, v. 3. 207. 

19. subscribed, surrendered; literally 'signed away*. Cf. 
subscription^ iii. 2. 18. 

20. exhibition, allowance. See Glossary. 

21. Upon the gad, suddenly, as if pricked by a gad (i.e* a 
^oad). Cf. ' upon the spur of the moment'. 

27. terrible, terrified. 

40. policy and reverence of age, i,e, policy of reverencing 
age. Cf. other instances of this figure of speech — hendiadys 
— in line 159, "image and horror", and i. 4. 333, "This milky 
gentleness and course ". 

41. the best of our times, the best part of our lives, as in 
L I. 288 and i. 2. 104. 

45. suffered, allowed, endured. 

76. where, whereas, as commonly in Shakespeare. 



I04 KING LEAR [Act I 

80. wrote. Cf. mistook, ii. 4. 11; feU, iv. 6. 54; and see 
Abbott, §§ 343, 344. 
8z. pretence of danger, dangerous intention. Cf. i. 4. 68. 

90, 91. wind me into him, worm yourself into his confi- 
dence. Me is an ethic dative. Cf. iv. 6. 88. 

92. I would unstate myself, &c. ; I should give up my posi- 
tion and dignity in order to be certain how matters stand. 

94. convey, discharge, carry out; commonly with a notion 
of secrecy. See Glossary. 

96. As Wright has pointed out, this passage may have been 
suggested by the eclipses of the sun and moon in September 
and October, 1605. See Introduction, (2). 

There is perhaps a reference to the Gunpowder Plot (5th 
Nov. 1605) in the words "in palaces, treason" and ** machi- 
nations, hollowness, treachery . 

97. though the wisdom of nature, &c. *' Though natural 
philosophy can give account of eclipses, yet we feel their con- 
sequences" (Johnson). 

ZOZ-Z06. This villain . • • graves. Omitted in the Qu^os. 

103. bias of nature, i,e, natural bias or inclination. 

Z09. Gloucester's superstitiousness has made him an easy 
prey to Edmund's cunning. His reference to the injustice done 
to Kent gives point to the folly of his own credulity. Lear 
was no more unjust to the *' noble and true-hearted Kent" than 
Gloucester himself is to Edgar. 

zzo. foppery, folly, the original meaning oifbp being a 'fool*. 
Ct fopptshy i. 4. 158. 

ZZ5. spherical predominance, synonymous with '' planetary 
influence ". 

Z20. pat he comes like the catastrophe, &c. An allusion 
to the clumsy structure of the early comedies, in which the 
conclusion seemed to come by chance at the very moment it 
was wanted. 

Z2Z, Z22. Tom o' Bedlam. Seeii. 3. 14. Thanks to Edmund's 
treachery, Tom o' Bedlam is yet to be Edgar's cue. 

Z29. succeed, ensue, turn out: used, like the noun * success ', 
indifferently of good or bad consequences. Cf. "this good 
success", V. 3. 194. 

Z30-Z37. as of . . . Come, come. Omitted in the Folios. 

Z33. diffidences, suspicions, distrust: now used only of dis- 
trust of one's self. 

134. dissipation of cohorts. Probably corrupt: the phrase 
does not suit the context, and neither of the words occurs else- 



Scene 4] NOTES 105 

where in Shakespeare. Of the emendations which have been 
suggested, the best is * disputation of consorts ' (Craig). 

Z36. a sectaiy astronomical, a devotee of astrology. 

147, Z48. with the mischief . . . allay, would scarcely be 
allayed even by doing harm to your person. 

150-155. I pray you . . . Armed, brother! Omitted in the 
Quartos. 

I53« yc »s strictly a nominative, but it is frequently used in 
E. £., and especially by the dramatists, instead of the objective 
you, Cf. i. 4. 293 and ii. 2. 41. 

z66. practices, plots, artifices; a common sense in E. E. 
Cf. iL I. 73, 107, &c., said practised^ iii. 2. 52, &c. 

Scene 3 

This scene takes up the main thread of the story and follows 
directljr on the closing dialogue of scene i. In the interval 
Gonenl is fully instated in her new power, and has gained 
confidence in her ability to deprive Lear of the remnants of his 
authority. 

z. for chiding of. See note, ii. i. 39. 

zo. answer, answer for. Cf. i. i. 144. 

20. With checks as flatteries, &c. The line is best ren- 
dered, *With rebukes instead of flatteries, when flatteries are 
seen to feed their folly'. As has the force of * instead of 
rather than of * as well as '• They in the second half of the line 
is sometimes taken to refer to ** old fools ", ue, * when old fools 
are seen to be deceived '. Possibly the line is corrupt : lines 
16-20 are omitted in the Folios. 

24. Goneril has more initiative than her sister. It is she who 
** breeds occasion " to humble Lear completely, and she dictates 
her sister's policy. 

Scene 4 

Lear comes to realize the position in which he has placed 
himself. Hitherto he has appeared merely hasty, wayward, 
and imperious, but we now oegin to see the better elements 
of his character. The pathos of his lot is emphasized by the 
solicitude of Kent and the significant utterances of the Fool, 
and he now wins our sympathy. 

2. defuse, confuse, hence 'disguise': an obsolete form of 
diffuse, 

zz. What dost thou profess? What is thy profession? Note 
the play on the word in Kent's reply. 



io6 KING LEAR [Act I 

15. converse, associate: the common meaning: in Shake- 
speare. 

z6, 17. to eat no fish. Warburton explained this as a refer- 
ence to the Roman Catholic custom of eating- fish on Fridays. 
<* In Queen Elizabeth's time the Papists were esteemed enemies 
to the government. Hence the proverbial phrase of * He 's an 
honest man and eats no fish', to signify he's a friend to the 
g-ovemment and a Protestant." Capell explained it to mean 
that Kent was *' no lover of such meagre diet as fish ": cf. 
a Henry /K, iv. 3. 99 ; but this gives the phrase little point. If 
Warburton's explanation is correct, Kent uses this ^irase as 
an indirect way of expressing his loyalty. 

24. Who. See Abbott, § 274. Cf. iv. i. 46. 

33. curious. See Glossary. 

46. clotpoll, blockhead, < clod-pate'. The form 'clodpole* 
occurs in Twelfth Night, iii. 4. 208. 

53. roundest, plainest. Cf. Othello, i. 3. 90, "a round un- 
varnished tale"; and Twelfth Night, ii. 3. 102, *'I must be 
round with you ". 

58, 59. For the construction, see note on iii. 2. 12. 

65, &c. We have here the first indication of Lear's finer 
qualities. Though hasty in temper, he is at least generous- 
Sooner than believe in any purposed unkindness, he blames his 
own suspicions. 

66. faint, cold, indifferent, half-hearted. 

68. pretence, ofier. It is commonly synonymous with pur^ 
pose {e:g, i. 2. 81), but here it has a stronger force. 

70. this two days, a common Shakespearian usage. 

73. In Lear's "No more of that", &c., we detect the first 
hint of his regret for his treatment of Cordelia. 

92. The Fool plays a very important part in ITifig Lear, He 
is not an accessory suited to the public taste, and he has a 
higher function than merely to relieve the intensity of the 
situation. His rambling remarks do relax the strain on out 
feelings, but their chief effect is, by reason of their deep signifi< 
cance, to heighten the pathos. See Introduction (4). 

coxcomb, the fool's cap. 

94. you were best, a common construction in E. E. It is a 
corrupted survival of an O. E. usage, in which you is the dative 
and the whole phrase is impersonal. That Shakespeare used 
you as a nominative may be seen from such lines as " I were 
better to be eaten to death ", a Henry IV, i. 2. 245, and **She 
were better love a dream ", Twelfth Night, ii. 2. 27. Cf. iii. 4. 95. 



Scene 4] NOTES 107 

99. on '8, a euphonic contraction of <of his'. See Abbott, 
§ 182. Cf. i. 5. 19, and on 7, 1. 145, &c. 

zoz. nuncle, the customary address of a fool to hb master: 
a contraction of mine unde. 

Z08. Lady the brach, ue. the bitch-hound. Cf. iii. 6. 67. 

ZZ3. showest, seemest to have. Cf. shows (appears), L 254. 

Z15. owest, i.e, ownest. Cf. L i. 196. 

zz6. goest, i.e. walkest, as often in Shakespeare. 

1x7. Learn more than thou trowest. Don't believe all you 
hear. 

1X8. Set, stake, offer wag-ers at dice. Cf. Richard Ily iv. i. 57, 
" Who sets me else? by heaven I '11 throw at all " {i.e. who else 
lays down stakes, challenges me). The meaning seems to be, 
** offer lower wagers than your dice-throws bring to you, than 
you win at a throw", or ** stake lower than the chances of your 
game ". 

X23, 124. Can you make no use of nothing? The Fool 
suggests that his lines have a significance which Lear has not 
realized. Kent is the first to see that "this is not altogether fool ". 

X32-147. That lord . . . snatching. Omitted in the Folios. 
Johnson suggests that there was perhaps a political reason in 
their omission, *' as they seemed to censure tlje monopolies " ; 
but this objection does not apply to the fool's verses. 

The first two verses are explained by a passage in the old 
play of King Lear. See Introduction (3). 

145. monopoly. " A satire on the gross abuses of mono- 
polies at that time, and the corruption and avarice of the 
courtiers, who commonly went shares with the patentee " 
(Warburton). 

out, taken out, granted to me. 

X53. thou borest thy ass on thy back. An allusion to 
iEsop's fable. 

X55. like myself, i.e. like a fool. He again insists on his 
seriousness. 

X57-160. "There never was a time when fools were less in 
favour; and the reason is, that they were never so little wanted, 
for wise men now supply their place " (Johnson). 

X58. foppish, foolish. Cf. fippety, i. 2. no. 

165, 166. These two lines, like several others farther on, are 
probably taken from an old song. Steevens points out a 
nmilar couplet in Hey wood's Rape ofLucrece (1608): 
" When Tarquin first in court began, 
And was approved king. 
Some men for sudden jov 'gan weep, 
But I for sorrow sing . 



io8 KING LEAR [Act I 

Z79. frontlet, literally a band worn on the forehead, here 
used metaphorically for * frown '. 

182. an O, a mere cipher, of no value unless joined to a 
figure. 

i8g. shealed, sheUed. This form survives in Scots and 
provincial Eng-lish. 

191. other, i,e, others. Other is now plural only when it is 
used attributively (e,g, other men). In O. E. other was used in 
both numbers, the plural form being othre. The final e was 
dropped in time ; hence the E. E. plural form other^ which is 
found in the authorized version of the Bible along with the 
modem form others (see 5. Luke^ xxiii. 32). 

Z97. put on, encourage. Cf. ii. i. 99y * incite to '. 

Z98. allowance, approval. See Glossary. 

200. tender, care, tendance. Cf. i Henry /F, v. 4, 49, 
** thou makest some tender of my life ". 
weal, commonwealth. 

203. The somewhat embarrassed syntax and the indirect 
expressions betoken Goneril's hesitation. Her statements have 
been direct enough while she merely objected to Lear's conduct. 
Now for the first time she threatens him to his face. 

206. it. This possessive form is of fairly common occur- 
rence in E. E. Cf. iv. 2. 32. The ordinary neuter possessive 
in E. E. is his. Its' is not found in Spenser, and occurs very 
seldom in Shakespeare {e,g, Henry VIiI^ i. i. 18), but it began 
about this time to replace his. For the form iV, cf. the West 
Midland uninflected genitive hit. See Abbott, § 228. 

Sir Joshua Reynolds remarks on the incoherent words with 
which Shakespeare often finishes this Fool's speeches: ''We 
may suppose that they had a custom of taking off the edge of 
too sharp a speech by covering it hastily with the end of an old 
song, or any glib nonsense that came into mind". This may 
apply to "Whoop, Jug! I love thee" in 1. 215; but in the present 
case there is a very pertinent meaning in the *glib nonsense *. 

207. A similar figure of speech occurs in Spenser's story of 
Lear, Faerie Queene^ ii. 10. 30. See Appendix, p 149. 

215. Jug, a colloquial name for a sweetheart or mistress, 
derivatively a substitute for the feminine name Joan or Joanna. 
According to Steevens, Whoop^ Jug! I love thee is a quotation 
from an old song. 

218. notion, understanding, intellect: the only meaning of 
the word in Shakespeare. 

Lear's awakening is so sudden that he can hardly believe 
his senses. This reference to his intellect is prophetic. It is 
the first hint of his madness. 



Scene 4] NOTES 109 

222-224. On hearing- the Fool's reply, Lear says he should 
like to know if he is only Lear's shadow. His marks of 
sovereignty, his knowledge, and his reason all tell him that he 
is Lear himself, and therefore the father of Goneril, but he may 
be falsely persuaded to that effect. — This passage is omitted in 
the Folios. 

Note the change, from this juncture, in Lear's attitude to the 
Fool. 

225. Which, whom. See Abbott, § 266. 

227. admiration, astonishment, wonder. 

234. Shows, appears; epicurism, sensuality, though found 
in £.£. also in the specialized sense of * gluttony '. 

236. graced, honourable. 

238. Goneril admits her own masterfulness. Her threats are 
no longer hesitating or cloaked in obscure phraseology. 

240. depend, attend on you, be dependants. For the con- 
struction see Abbott, § 354. 

246. Goneril's objection to the conduct of Lear's servants is 
no doubt justified. We are ready to believe that, on the prin- 
ciple of liKe master like man, they are impetuous and noisy. 
Goneril has the ability to avail herself of every opportunity of 
criticism, and to turn every fault, however small, into an excuse 
for her conduct. 

252. sea-monster. Of. iv. 2. 50. This is often said to be 
the hippopotamus, which in Egyptian tradition was a monster 
of impiety and ingratitude. But as the hippopotamus does not 
live in the sea, some commentators think the reference is to the 
whale. Mr. Craig suggests that Shakespeare had not **any 
special kind of monster in his thoughts, but was thinking of 
those monsters of classical mjrthology slain by Hercules and. 
by Perseus in defence of beauty — ^these stories were then very 
popular ". Of. Merchant of Venice, iii. 2. 57. 

254. choice and rarest, ue. choicest and rarest, the super- 
lative form applying to both : a common construction in E. £. 

259. engine, ue, an engine of torture, the rack. 

263. dear, precious. Dear is used regularly in E. E. to ex- 
press extremeness or intensity: thus *my dearest foe'=*my 
greatest foe '. 

271. derogate, deteriorated, debased. 

274. thwart, perverse; disnatured, unnatural. 

285. With characteristic masterfulness and deceit Goneril 
had given orders for the number of Lear's followers to be 
decreased before desiring him **a little to disquantity his train". 
Before the threat was uttered, it had been carried out. 



no KING LEAR [Act I Scenes 

agz. untented, incurable; literaUy not to be probed by a 
tent. See i. i. 253. 

293. Beweep, i,e, if you beweep. 

297. comfortable, ready to comfort. Cf. ii. 2. 158. 

303. Albany appears at the beginning of the play to be a 
mere puppet in the hands of Goneril. He has his qualms of 
conscience at her conduct; but he has great reluctance in 
passing any criticism, and he is stopped short before he can do 
more than suggest his disapproval. But events show that he 
is not wanting in moral force. 

314-325. This man . . . unfitness, omitted in the Quartos. 

316. At point, in readiness, fully equipped. Cf. iii. i. 33. 

317. buzz, whisper, rumour. 
322. taken, i,e, by the harms. 

329. full, the adjective for the adverb. Cf. iv. 6. 3. 

335. attask'd, taken to task, blamed. The Folios read *' at 
task ". 

338. Malone compares Shakespeare's Sonnets^ ciii. : 

" Were it not sinful then, striving to mend. 
To mar the subject that before was well?" 

340. the event, the issue ; time will show. 

Scene 6 

This scene contains little of importance to the action of the 
story. Its purpose is to convey a fuller sense of Lear's mis- 
fortune ; and this is achieved by the subtle prattle of the Fool, 
who knows better than Lear how Regan will act, Lear's own 
involuntary reference to Cordelia (1. 2^, and above all his fore- 
boding of madness. 

1, Gloucester, the city of Gloucester. 

2. Acquaint my daughter no further. Contrast Goneril's 
instruction to Oswald in the preceding scene. 

8. brains, used in the singular, as elsewhere occasionally in 
Shakespeare. Cf. AlVs Well, iii. 2. 16, **The brains of my 
Cupid's knocked out". 

II. I,e, as you have no brains, you run no risk of kibes and 
needing to wear slippers. Kibes, sores on the heels; also 
chilblains. 

14. kindly, used equivocally with the two meanings 'with 
kindness' and 'after her nature'. 



^Act 11 Scene X] NOTES iii 

25. crab, t>. crab-api^e. 

24. I did her wrong. « This and Lear's subsequent ejacu- 
lations to himself are in verse; his distracted replies to the Fool 
in prose " (Herford). 

3a. Be ; gfenerally used in E. E. to express doubt (a) in 
questions, and (b) after verbs of thinking. See Abbott, § 299. 

35. the seven stars, the Pleiades. 

38. To Uke't again perforce! "He is meditating' on the 
resumption of his royjdty." This is the interpretation of 
Johnson, which is better than that of Steevens, to the effect 
that he is thinking on his daughter's having so violently de- 
prived him of the privileges she had agreed to grant him. 

44, 45, " The mind's own anticipation of madness ! The 
deepest tragic notes are often struck by a half sense of an 
impending blow" (Coleridge). 



Act II— Scene 1 

The minor thread of the story is a^in taken up, and is now 
interwoven with the principal one. Edmund, after succeeding 
in his plot to turn his father against Edgar, fitly joins the party 
of Regan and Cornwall. 

z. Save thee, i,e, God save thee, a common form of saluta- 
tion. 

6. news ; used indifferently in E. E. in the singular (as in 87, 
38) and plural (as here). 

8. ear- kissing, whispered; arguments, cf. i. i. 209. 

zo. toward, near at hand. Cf. iii. 3. 19 and iv. 6. 190. 

One of Lear's objects in dividing his kingdom, it will be 
remembered, was "that future strife may be prevented i!ow** 
(i. I- 37)- 

Z7. of a queasy, question, requiring delicate handling; 
queasy, strictly * squeamish', * sickly'. 

z8. briefness, promptitude. 

26. Upon his party. The usual explanation of this line is 
that Edmund, in order to confuse his brother and alarm him 
to a speedy flight, asks Edgar whether he has not spoken 
agfainst the Duke of Cornwall, and then, reversing the ques- 
tion, asks whether he has not spoken against the Duke of 
Albany. Upon his party elsewhere in Shakespeare invariably 
means <on his side' (cf. iv. 6. 232). But this is not an in- 
superable obstacle to the simpler interpretation, 'Have you 



112 KING LEAR [Act II 

said nothing' upon the party formed by him against the Duke 
of Albany?' 

31. Yield . . . here. Spoken loudly, so that Gloucester may 
hear. 

39. Edmund knows how to turn to account Gloucester's 
superstitiousness. 

Mumbling of. The preposition of shows mumbling to 
have the force of a verbal noun. The full construction would 
be on mumbling of\ cf. for chiding ofu^, i. But in E. E. the 
verbal noun was influenced by the present participle: hence 
the omission of the anterior preposition here, and of the pos- 
terior preposition in v. 3. 274, a^hanging thee, 

46. bend, direct. Cf. iv. 2. 74. 

49. loathly, with abhorrence, loathingly. 

50. motion, a fencing term for * attack ', * thrust *. 
53. alarum*d. See Glossary. 

59. arch, master, chief: a substantival use of the adjective. 

65. pight, determined, resolved: an old past tense of * pitch*. 
Cf. Troilus and Cressida^ v. 10. 24, " You vile abominable tents. 
Thus proudly pight upon our Phrygian plains ". 

curst, angry, sharp : the same word as cursed, 

67. Thou unpossessing bastard. *' Thus the secret poison 
in Edmund's own heart steals forth; and then observe poor 
Gloucester's * Loyal and natural boy ', as if praising the crime 
of Edmund's birth " (Coleridge). 

unpossessing, as a bastard cannot inherit. 
73. suggestion. See Glossary, 
practice. Cf. i. 2. 166. 

75. If they not thought. A common construction in E.E. 
The Auxiliary was not required when the negative preceded the 
verb. See Abbott, § 305, and cf. iv. 2. 2. 

77. fastened, determined. 

78. got, i,e, begot. Cf. iii. 4. 134. 

85. capable, legally able to inherit. The New English Dic^ 
tionary gives the following quotation from Guillim's Heraldry 
(1610), ** Bastards are not capable of their fathers patrimony ", 

97. consort, company, set: accented on the last syllable. 

zoo. expense, the spending, expenditure. 

zoi. Regan takes her cue from Goneril. She is perhaps 
even more repulsive than her sister, for she is cringingly spite- 
ful, and lacks courage as well as initiative. " Regan is not, 



Scenes] NOTES 113 

in fact, a greater monster than Goneril, but she has the power 
of casting more venom" (Coleridge). 

106. 'T was my duty, the crowning touch of Edmund's sub- 
lime hypocrisy. 

107. bewray, reveal, with no sense of perfidy, as now. 
Cf. iii. 6. 10^ 

his practice, Edgar's plot. 
XII. make your own purpose, &c. Carry out your own 
design, availing yourself as you please of my power. 

113. virtue and obedience doth. A singular verb is com- 
mon in E.E. after two nouns which enforce the same idea or 
are not meant to be thought of separately. Cf. iii. 4. 133 and 
141. 

X19. Regan interposes to explain of herself the reason of 
their visit. It is not necessary to hold that Regan interrupts 
Cornwall, much less that the interruption is * characteristic *. 
She could not behave to Cornwall in the overbearing manner 
that Goneril does to Albany. Cornwall's remark is complete 
in itself, and Regan merely takes it up and adds to it, as she is 
the person mainly concerned in their visit. It was to her that 
both her father and sister had written. Moreover, we are dis 
tinctly told in the following scene that it is the Duke's disposi ' 
tion ** not to be rubb'd nor stopp'd ". Cf. also ii. 4. 88-90. 

1x9. threading dark-eyed night. Note the pun. There is 
another instance of it in King Johuy v. 4. 11, ** Unthread the 
rude eye of rebellion ". 

xao. poise, weight, moment. 

123. which. The antecedent is some such word as * letters * 
understood. The relative is used with great freedom in E. E. 

125. attend dispatch, await to be dispatched. Cf. ii. 4. 35. 

Scene 2 

The events of this scene are not important in themselves, 
though they emphasize Regan's and ComwaU's hostility to 
Lear. They are essentially preparatory to the fourth scene 
of this act. 

I. dawning, morning. 

8. Lipsbury pinfold. This phrase remains unexplamed. 
The suggestion which is received with most favour is Uiat " It 
may be a coined name, and it is just possible that it might 
mean the teeth, as being the pinfold within the lips " (Nares^ : 
cf. ipKos dUvTuv, This explanation, however, is not entirely 
satisfactory. There is probably an allusion to some place of 
which record is lost. 



114 KING LEAR [Act II 

14, &c. three-suited. Some of Kent's allusions ^re explained 
by a passage in Ben Jonson's Silent Wotnan^ iii. i, in which a 
nch wife rails at her husband in the following terms: **Who 
gives you your maintenance, I pray you? Who allows you 
your horse-meat, and man's meat? your three suits of apparel 
a year? your four pair of stockings, one silk, three worsted?" 
Cf. also Middleton's Phcenix^ iv. 3 (quoted by Steevens): 
"How's this? Am I used like a hundred-pound gentleman?** 
Threesuitedf menials being generally allowed three suits a 
year; hundreds-pound., a term of reproach implying poverty; 
worsted-stocking^ likewise implying poverty or menial employ- 
ment, silk stockings being invariably worn by people who 
could afford them. 

15. lily-livered. Cf. iv. 2. 50, "Milk-livered man". The 
liver being regarded as the seat of courage, a bloodless liver 
was said to betoken cowardice. Cf. 2 Henry IV, iv. 3. 113: 
"left the liver white and pale, which is the badge of pusilla- 
nimity and cowardice ". 

x6. action -taking, settling disputes by law rather than by 
the sword ; hence likewise * cowardly ', *■ mean-spirited '. 

glass-gazing, looking in the mirror, foppish. 

super-serviceable, above his work (Wright). Johnson and 
Schmidt give * over-oflficious '. 

17. one-trunk-inheriting, possessing enough for one trunk 
only. Inheriting, see Glossary. 

ax. addition. Cf. i. i. 129. 

a8. sop o' the moonshine, perhaps an aUusion to an old 
dish of eggs cooked in oil called *eggs in moonshine', re- 
ferred to in Gabriel Harvey's Pierces Supererogation (1593) and 
other contemporary works. 

cullionly, rascally, wretched, like a cullion. 

a8, ag. barber-monger, a frequenter of barbers' shops, a fop. 

32. vanity the puppet. 'Vanity' was a conunon character 
in the old Moralities, 

33» 34* carbonado, slash, hack; literally, make into a * car- 
bonado ', a piece of flesh cut crosswise and grilled. 

34. come your ways, come on. 

36. neat, foppish, spruce. 

40. With you. Kent purposely takes Edmund's "matter" 
in the sense of ' cause of quarrel '. 

goodman, a familiar name of address, used contemptu- 
ously. 



Scenes] NOTES 115 

41. flesh, initiate in bloodshed; primarily, to initiate io the 
taste of flesh, as hunting-dog-s. 
49. disclaims in, disowns. 

58. zed! thou unnecessary letter. Cf. Ben Jonson's Eti^' 
lish Grammar (ed, GifFord and Cunningham, iii. p. 435): **Z is 
a letter often heard amongst us, but seldom seen", its place 
being commonly taken in writing by S. The letter Z was 
often omitted in the dictionaries of the time. 

59. unbolted, i,e, unsifted; hence 'coarse*. "Unbolted 
mortar is mortar made of unsifted lime, and to break the 
lumps it is necessary to tread it by men in wooden shoes" 
(ToUet). 

69. intrinse, intricate. See Glossary. 

72. turn their halcyon beaks, &c. An allusion to the old 
idea that the kingfisher, if hung up by the neck, always turned 
so as to face straight against the wind. 

75. epileptic, distorted with a grin. 

76. Smile, smile at. Cf. i. i. 154. 

77. 78. Goose . . . Camelot. Another obscure passage. 
Some commentators suggest an allusion to a proverbial say- 
ing" in the Arthurian legends, Camelot being the seat of King 
Arthur's court. Others, more plausibly, refer to the flocks of 
^eese bred near Cadbury, in Somersetshire, the traditional site 
of Camelot. 

86. The key-note of Kent's character, and the source of all 
his troubles. Cf. ii. 4. 41. 

89. some, with the force of the indefinite article, a survival 
of the O. £. sum, 

9Z. garb, manner, fashion : as often in E. E. The meaning 
dress is derivative and comparatively late. 

95. These kind of knaves. See KeUner, ^ 167-172. 

97. observants, obsequious courtiers. Similarly observance 
= homage. As You Like It, v. 2. 102, and observe = to show 
respect to, as in "the observed of all observers", Hamlet, 
iii. I. 162. Note that observants is accented on the first syllable. 

98. nicely. See Glossary. 

100. aspect, accented on the second syllable, as always in 
Shakespeare. Both aspect and influence have an astrological 
reference. 

Z06. win your displeasure, &c., ue, 'i^n you in your dis- 
pleasure to ask me to be a plain knave (ue, a flatterer)'. 

zxx. upon his misconstruction, through his misunderstand- 
ing me. 



ii6 KING LEAR [Act II 

zza. conjunct, in agreement with him. Cf. v. i. i2. 

115. worthied him, made him appear worthy. 

zzy. in the fleshment of, being fleshed with, made eag-er. 
Cf. 1. 41. 

119. their fool, a fool compared with them, — according to 
their own stories of their valour. 

Z32. colour, sort, kind. 

135-139. His fault . . . punish'd with. Omitted in the 
Folios, which read for 1. 139, ** The king his master needs must 
take it ill ". 

148. rubb'd, hindered, obstructed : a term in the game of 
bowls, the noun rub signifying anything that hinders a bowl's 
course. Cf. King John^ iii. 4. 128: 

** For even the breath of what I mean to speak 
Shall blow each dust, each straw, each little rub, 
Out of the path". 

149. watched, kept awake. Cf. * o'erwatch'd *, 1. 164. 
151. out at heels. Cf. * out at elbows *. 

154. approve, confirm, prove the truth of. Cf. L i. 178. 

Z55, Z56. out of heaven's . . . 8un„ a proverbial expression 
for a change from better to worse. The earliest known in- 
stance of it occurs in the Proverbs qf John Heywoody 1546 (ed. 
Sharman, 1874, p. 115): 

** In your running from him to me, yee runne 
Out of God's blessing into the warme sunne". 

Cf. also Lyly's Euphues (ed. Arber, pp. 196 and 320). But 
the origin of this * common saw ' is not known. Hanmer said 
it was applied to those who are turned out of house and home 
to the open weather, and Johnson suggested that it was used 
of men dismissed from an hospital or house of charity. A 
recent explanation — that " the proverb refers to the haste of the 
congregation to leave the shelter of the church immediately 
after the priest's benediction, running from God's blessing into 
the warm sun" — need not be treated seriously. For the idea 
of the proverb cf. Psalms^ Hi. 8. 

162-164. Many explanations of this difficult sentence have 
been suggested. Some hold that the lines are a portion of 
Cordelia's lettfer read aloud by Kent. Others correct the 
syntax, reading * she'll ' for * shall *, and taking * state-seeking * 
as a compound word. Others again accept the incompleteness 
of the sentence and ascribe it to Kent's bemg " weary and o'er- 
watched ", the halting S3rntax indicating that Kent is dropping 



Scene 4] NOTES 117 

off to sleep. The text is apparently corrupt, and some words 
or lines may have been omitted. 

Z63. enormous. See Glossary, 

Scene 3 

"Edgar's assumed ' madness serves the great purpose of 
taking off part of the shock which would otherwise be caused 
by the true madness of Lear " (Coleridge). 

Bedlam beggars or Tom 0' Bedlams (i. 2. 121), also known 
as Abraham-men^ were convalescent or harmless patients of 
Bedlam asylum who were turned out to wander or beg. The 
custom was in vogue in Shakespeare's time, but appears to 
have ceased about the middle of the seventeenth centurjr. (See 
note, iii. 6. 74.) The following account of an Abraham-man, 
quoted by Steevens from Dekker's BeU-mun ofLondon^ 1608, is 
an interesting parallel to Shakespeare's description of Edgar: 
— *' He sweares he hath been in Bedlam, and will talke fran- 
tickely of purpose i you see pinnes stuck in sundry places of 
his naked flesh, especially in his armes, which paine he gladly 
puts himself to, only to make you believe he is out of his wits. 
He calls himselfe by the name of Poore Tom^ and comming near 
any body cries out. Poor Tom is a-cold. Of these Abraham-men, 
some be exceeding merry, and doe nothing but sing songs 
fashioned out of their own braines: some will dance, others will 
doe nothing but either laugh or weepe : others are dogged and 
so sullen both in loke and speech, that spying but a small 
company in a house, they bololy and bluntly enter, compelling 
the servants through fear to give them what they demand." 

z, 3. proclaimed, port. Of. iL i. 60 and 80. 

6. am bethought, am minded, intend, 
zo. elf, mat, tangle, — ^as an elf might do. 
Z7. object, appearance. 

z8. pelting, paltry. See Glossary. 

ao. Turlygod, apparently a common name for a Bedlam 
beggar: perhaps an English variation of Turlupin, the name 
of a similar class of beggars in France in the fourteenth cen- 
tury. 

Scene 4 

This great scene brings us to the crisis of Lear's anguish. 
Finding Regan and Cornwall unexpectedly absent from their 
own home, Lear has followed them to Gloucester's castle. 

7. cruel, with a play upon crewel, worsted: apparently a 
common pun at the time. 

(M906) K 



ii8 KING LEAR [Act I 

zo. nether - stocks, literally stockings, another pun. Cf. 
z Henry IVy ii. 4. 130, '* I '11 sew nether stocks and mend them 
and foot them too". Breeches appear to have been called 
* over-stocks ' or * upper-stocks *. 

23. upon respect, deliberately, upon consideration. 

24. Resolve, inform, satisfy. Cf. resolution, i. 2. 93. 

27. commend, deliver. See Glossary. * 

3a. spite of intermission, though my business was thus 
interrupted. 

33. on, in accordance with, on the ground of: this sense, 
which is very common in Shakespeare, arises from the tem- 
poral sense * inunediately after '• Cf. iii. 7. 76. 

41. Admirable as is Kent's character in point of honesty and 
manliness, he is an unfortunate messenger for Lear to have 
chosen. He has Lear's hastiness and want of tact in an 
exaggerated degree, and he only prejudices his master's 
cause. In a sense all Lear's friends are his enemies, as they 
play into Groneril's and Regan 'is hands. 

45-52. Winter's . . . year. Omitted in the Quartos. 

51. dolours, another pun, suggested by the »Km^-* bags'. 
The same pun occurs in the Tempest, ii. i. 18, 19, and Measure 
for Measure, i. 2. 50. 

53, 54. mother and Hysterica passio were the popular and 
medical names for the complaint now known as hysteria. The 
use of these terms was probably suggested by a passage in 
Harsnet's Declaration of Popish Impostures, 1603, to which 
Shakespeare is otherwise indebted in this play. Lear's anguish 
of heart makes him ascribe to himself the complaint which, 
according to Harsnet, " riseth of a winde in the bottome of the 
belly, and proceeding with a great swelling, causeth a very 
painful collicke in the stomach, and an extraordinary giddiness 
m the head" (quoted by Bishop Percy). Hence Lear's words, 
'* climbing sorrow " and ** swells up towards my heart ". 

60. How chance was a common construction in questions 
for *how chances it that*. "Here chance takes no inflection 
and almost assumes the character of an adverb " (Nev> English 
Dictionary), Cf. Merry Wives, v. 5. 230, "How chance you 
went not with Master Slender?" 

64, 65. school to an ant . . . winter. See Proverbs, vi. 6-8. 
A king's followers are only summer friends: Lear has "so small 
a train " as he is in adversity. 

67. stinking, referring likewise to Lear's adversity. Malone 
quotes in illustration ^*s Well, v. 2. 4, &c.: "I am now, sir, 
muddied in fortune's mood, and smell somewhat strong of her 



Scene 4] NOTES 119 

strong' displeasure. . . . Truly fortune's displeasure is but 
sluttish, if it smell so strongly as thou speakest of." 

74. sir, man; frequently so used as a common noun in 
Shakespeare. 

80, 8z. After referring to the wise man flying, the Fool adds 
that the wise man who is such a knave as to run away is in 
reality a fool, while on the other hand the fool who remains is 
no knave. The antecedent to that is knave, 

84. Deny, refuse. 

85. fetches, subterfuges, tricks. Note the play on the word 
in 1. 87. 

zoz, &c. Lear's generous attempt to excuse Cornwall sug- 
g'ests that he is mellowing with his misfortunes. The ''fiery 
quality " that he complains of is one of his own strongest char- 
acteristics, and he himself was '' unremovable and fixed " when 
he disinherited Cordelia and banished Kent. His misfortunes 
have so far dazed him that he almost seems to be learning self- 
control. But the sight of Kent, and the thought of the indignity 
thus done him in his messenger, throw him back on his old 
impetuosity. 

zoa. office, duty. 

Z06. more headier. For the double comparative see note 
i. I. 71. The comparative has here merely an intensive force, 
"more headier" meaning *very heady', *too heady'. Ct. 
Cynibeline^ iii. 4. 164, **the harder heart". Heady y impetuous. 

X07. To take, for taking. This gerundial infinitive is com- 
mon in E. E. 
zzo. remotion, removal. 
Z15. cry sleep to death, put an end to sleep. 

zz8. cockney, a pampered, affected woman. The context 
suggests that the word is used also in the sense of ' cook ' ; but 
there is no evidence to show that it had ever any such meaning. 
See Glossary. 

131. An allusion to the story of Prometheus, who was 
chained to a rock on Mount Caucasus, where a vulture fed on 
his liver. 

135) 136* The literal meaning is the opposite of what is 
intended. The sense, however, is clear, — * You rather fail to 
value, are more likely to undervalue '. 

Z36-14Z. Say, how . . . blame. Omitted in the Quartos. 

Z5Z. unnecessary, of no account, useless. 

Z59. top, head, young bones, a fairlv common phrase in 
Elizabethan literature for an *• unborn child '. 



lao KING LEAR [Act II Scene 4 

z6o. taking, malignant, infecting, blasting: "used of the 
malignant influence of superhuman powers" (Schmidt). Cf. 
iii. 4. 56, and Hamlety i. i. 163, '* Then no planets strike, No 
fairy takes, nor witch hath power to charm ". 

z68. tender-hefted, tenderly fitted, delicately framed. Heft 
is an old form for haftf a handle. 

17a. sizes, allowances. See Glossary. 

Z75. bond of childhood. Lear himself is now constrained 
to refer to the " bond of childhood ". Cf. Cordelia's words, 
i. I. 86. 

Z76. Effects, manifestations. Cf. i. i. 124. 

178. So far Regan has said nothing to incense Lear. She 
has been cold and heartless, but she wants the courage to show 
herself in her true light before the arrival of her sister. Once 
she has Goneril's presence to support her, she can screw herself 
up to actions which are a maddening sequel to the praises Lear 
has just uttered. 

180. approves. Cf. ii. 2. 154. 

188. Allow, approve of. See Glossary. 

" When Lear calls upon the heavens to avenge his cause, 
'for they are old like him', there is nothit\^ extravagant or 
impious in this sublime identification of his age with theirs ; for 
there is no other image which could do justice to the agonising* 
sense of his wrongs and his despair " (Hazlitt). 

197. much less advancement, a much less respectable 
punishment. 

a 13. sumpter, literally a packhorse; used in the secondary 
sense of * drudge *. 
342. slack, neglect, be careless in their attendance on. 

253-255. I,e. wicked as Goneril is, she appears well favoured 
in comparison with Regan; it is somethmg to be said for 
Goneril that there is another even more wicked. 

261. "Observe that the tranquillity which follows the first 
stunning of the blow permits Lear to reason " (Coleridge). 

262. superfluous, possessed of more than what is necessary. 

282. flaws, shivers, splinters. See Glossary. 

283. Or ere. See Glossary. 

The disjointed syntax, the short words, and their direct- 
ness show Lear's difficulty in expressing himself. In this awful 
picture of passion the very structure of the lines reflects the 
mcoherence of Lear's rage. He begins by asking Heaven for 
patience, but in the next breath asks to be touched with noble 



Act III Scene i] NOTES 121 

anger, and, struggling' against his gentler impulses, defiantly 
threatens the "terrors of the earth". 

289. For his particular, as to him himself. Cf. TroUus and 
CressidUf ii. 2. 9, '*As far as toucheth my particular", ue, as 
far as I myself am concerned. 

303. incense, incite, provoke. 



Act III— Scene 1 

So far everything has gone well with Regan and GoneriL 
In this scene we have the first hint of their retribution, in the 
announcement that the King of France has planned an inva- 
sion. But though the tide is turning against Regan and 
Goneril, Lear's lot becomes only more pitiable. The agitation 
and tempest in his own mind are symbolized in the raging of 
the elements. 

6. main, apparently in the uncommon sense of tnainlandf 
though other instances of this use have been pointed out in 
E.E., but not in Shakespeare. 

7-Z5. tears . . . take all. Omitted in the Folios. 

zo. little world of man. An allusion to the old theory 
according to which man — the * microcosm ' or little world — 
was an epitome of the universe or great world — ^the * macro- 
cosm'. This theory was the basis of the astrological belief, 
so often alluded to m this play, in the connection of the move- 
ments of the planets with the fortunes of men. 

12. cub-drawn, ue, "with udders all drawn dry", "sucked 
and hungry ", as in As You Like It^ iv. 2. 115, 127. 

z8. upon the warrant of my note, on the strength of my 
information. 

zg. dear, important, momentous; cf. i. 4. 263. 

22-29. who have . • . furnishings. Omitted in the Quartos. 

23, 24. who, Which. See Abbott, § 266. 
speculations, observers : an instance of abstract for con- 
crete. Cf. iii. 4. 26. 

25. Intelligent, informative, giving information. Cf. iii. 7. 11. 

26. snuffs, resentments, quarrels. " To take in snuff" was 
p. regular phrase (used elsewhere in Shakespeare) for * to take 
(xffence at '. 

packings, plottings. Cf. packs (= confederacies), v. 3. 18, 
and the use of^the verb (=to arrange or manipulate fraudu* 
lently), as in the phrases ' to pack a jury ', * to pack cards '• 



122 KING LEAR [Act III 

ag. fumithingt, outward signs. 

30-42. But, true ... to you. Omitted in the Folios. 

47. fear, doubt Cf. v. i. 16. 

53» 54* your pain That way, ue. your work of search lies 
that way, while I'll go this. 

Scene 2 

a. hurricanoes, waterspouts. See Glossary. 

3. cocks, weathercocks. 

4. thought -executing, doing execution with the speed of 
thought, swift as thought. 

8. germens spill. See Glossary. 

zo. court holy-water, a proverbial phrase for flattery, fair 
words, * soft-sawder '. Cf. the French eau b^ite de coun 

Z2. here's a night pities. This construction is frequently 
explained as due to the omission of the relative (see Abbott^ 
§ 244); but it is really a survival of the construction called 
dird KOii^, in which one subject serves for two predicates, and 
from which the relative clause was developed. See Kellner» 
§§ 109-111. Cf. i. 4. 58, 59, iii. 4. 99, 100, and iv. 3. 33. 

z8. subscription, submission. Cf. subscribed, u 2. 19. 

23. battles, battalions, as commonly in E. E. 

27, &c. It is difficult to draw a satisfactory meaning from 
these verses, though the fool's remarks have generally a deep 
significance. The best explanation is that by Fumess: "A 
man who prefers or cherishes a mean member in place of a 
vital one shall suffer enduring pain where others would suffer 
merely a twinge. Lear had preferred Regan and Groneril to 
Cordelia," 

44. I.e. it is too great for man to suffer or dread. 

49. simular man, i.e. simulator. This is the reading of the 
Folios : the Quartos omit man, in which case simular is a noun. 

52. practised. Cf. i. 2. 166. 

53. concealing continents, 'shrouds of secrecy*. For 
this use of continent in the sense of 'that which contains', 
cf. Antony and Cleopatra, iv. 14. 40, ** Heart, once be stronger 
than thy continent' . . 

53> 54« cry These summoners grace. A common construe* 
tion. Cf. "cry you mercy", iii. 4. 159 and iii. 6. 50; grace, 
mercy. 

5S. More sinn'd against than sinning. Cf. the similar 



Scene 3] NOTES 123 

statement of Oedipus in the Oedipus Coloneus of Sophocles, 
U. 266, 267: 

he^l rd 7* ipya fiw 
wewwdfn* (crl fiSXKow H dedpcuc&ra 
{** Since mine acts, at least, have been in suffering rather 
than doing' ")• 

61. Denied, did not allow. Cf. ii. 4. 84. 

62. My ¥nt8 begin to turn. Note the succession of Lear's 
statements as to his mental condition and their increasing 
definiteness. In i. 4. 218, 219, he sa3rs: 

*• Either his notion weakens, his discemings 
Are lethargied — Hal waking? 'tis not so"; 

rnL 5.44,45: 

'* O, let me not be mad, not mad, sweet heaven I 
Keep me in temper: I would not be mad!"; 

in ii. 4. 215: 

** I prithee, daughter, do not make me mad"; 

in ii. 4. 283: 

**0 fool, I shall go mad!" 
Now he says definitely " My wits begin to turn ". 

69. Apparently a variation of the first verse of the Clown's 
song at the end of Twelfth N^hti 

" When that I was and a little tiny boy, 
With hey, ho, the wind and the rain, 
A foolish thing was but a toy. 

For the rain it raineth every day ". 

74-88. Omitted in the Quartos, and probably an actor's inter- 
polation. The verses are modelled on some well-known lines 
commonly called * Chaucer's Prophecy '. They are referred 
to as by Chaucer in Puttenham's Art of English Poesie (ed. 
Arber, p. 232), but are certainly not his. See Skeat's Chaucer, 
vol. i, p. ±6f where they are reprinted from Caxton. There is 
in the Bodleian (see Professor Skeat's letter to the Athetueum, 
19th December, 1896) a MS. copy of this very prophecy with 
the heading " Prophecia Merlini doctoris perfecti . In i Henry 
JV, iii. I. 150, Shakespeare speaks of **the dreamer Merlin 
and his prophecies ". Some of Merlin's prophecies ^re given 
in Holinshed. 

Scene ^ 

The Gloucester plot is again taken up and interwoven more 
closely with the main story. Hitherto Gloucester has only 
^ii^teq (tis^pprovi^ of Gonerd's an4 ?^^^pM?'9 con^HQt (iit 4* 297), 



124 KING LEAR [Act III 

but he now definitely throws in his lot with Lear. He confides 
in Edmund, and so plays into the hands of his enemies. The 
parallelisms in the two stories now become more marked. 

za. nome, to the utmost, thoroug-hly. Cf. iii. 4. 16. 

13. power already footed. See iii. i. 30-32. 

zg. toward. Cf. ii. i. 10. 

20. forbid thee, which you were forbidden to do him. 

Scene 4 

"O, what a world's convention of ag'onies is here! All 
external nature in a storm, all moral nature convulsed, — the 
real madness of Lear, the feigned madness of Edg'ar, the 
babbling' of the Fool, the desperate fidelity of Kent — surely 
such a scene was never conceived before or since! Take it 
but as a picture for the eye only, it is more terrific than any 
which a Michael Angelo, inspired by a Dante, could have 
conceived, and which none but a Michael Angelo could have 
executed. Or let it have been uttered to the blind, the bowl- 
ings of nature would seem converted into the voice of conscious 
humanity. This scene ends with the first symptoms of posi- 
tive derangement; and the intervention of the fifth scene is 
particularly judicious, — the interruption allowing an interval 
for Lear to appear in full madness in the sixth Vscene " (Cole- 
ridge). 

28, &c. Lear's affliction incites compassion in him for the 
poorest of his subjects. The finer elements in his character 
are brought out by his sufferings. "Expose thyself to feel 
what wretches feel " is utterly alien to the Lear of the first 
scene. Compare Gloucester's similar remark after he too has 
suffered (iv. i. 68-70). 

31. loop'd, full of holes, loop-holed. Cf. i Henry IVy iv. i. 71, 
"stop all sight-holes, every loop from whence The eye of reason 
may pry in upon us". 

37. Fathom and half, as if he were taking* sounding's at 
sea, the idea being suggested apparently by the rain. 

44. Through the sharp hawthorn, &c. Probably a line 
from an old song or ballad. Cf. Percy's Friar of Orders Grey^ 
1.87. 

45* go to thy cold bed, &c. This phrase occurs also in the 
Taming of the Shrew, Induction, 1. 10. It was apparently 
proverbial. 

51. laid knives . . . pew. This passage likewise seems to 
owe something (cf. ii. 4. 53) to Harsnet's Declaration of Popish 



Scene 4] NOTES 125 

Impostures^ 1603. Malone quotes from it a story of how an 
apothecary, in order to tempt a girl to suiciae, '' having 
brought with him ... a new halter, and two blades of knives, 
did leave the same upon the g'allerie floore in her maister's 
house "; and how ** it was reported that the devil layd them in 
the gallery that some of those that were possessed mig'ht either 
hang themselves with the halter or kill themselves with the 
blades ". 

53. four-inched, four inches broad. 

54. five wits, not the five senses^ but '' common wit, imagi- 
nation, fantasy, estimation, and memory ", according to a line 
in Stephen Hawes's Pastime of Pleasure (quoted by Malone). 
The two terms are often confounded, but Shakespeare keeps 
them distinct. Thus Sonnets^ cxli.: 

** But my five wits nor my five senses can 
Dissuade one foolish heart from serving thee ". 

Cf. iii. 6. 55, and Twelfth Nighty iv. 2. 92. 

56. star-blasting, being 'struck' or bligrhted by the influ- 
ence of the stars. 

taking. See ii. 4. 160. 

66. ''What a bewildered amazement, what a wrench of the 
imag'ination, that cannot be brought to conceive of any other 
cause of misery than that which has bowed it down, and absorbs 
all other sorrow in it's own ! His sorrow, like a flood, supplies 
the sources of all other sorrow." And again, "It is the mere 
natural ebullition of passion, urged nearly to madness, and that 
will admit no other cause of dire misfortune but its own, which 
swallows up all other griefs ". (Hazlitt.) 

71. pelican daughters, alluding to the legend that young* 
pelicans fed upon their parents' blood. The story occurs in the 
mediaeval Bestiaries, among others in the Ancren Riwle, Cf. 
Hamlet^ iv. 5. 146, and Richard II y ii. i. 126. A similar allusion 
occurs in the old play oi King Leiri 

" I am as kind as is the pellican 
That kils it selfe to save her yong ones lives ". 

7a. Pillicock — here suggested by 'pelican' — was a term of 
endearment meanin|f *my pretty boy'. There is perhaps an 
allusion to the old rhyme : 

" Pillicock, Pillicock sat on a hill. 
If he 's not gone, he sits there still ". 

(Quoted by Collier from Gammer GurtorCs Garland,^ 

8a. wore gloves in my cap, as his mistress's favours. 

94. Dolphin my boy. Apparently another allusion to a 
song^. The same phrase occurs in Ben Jonson's Bartholomrm 



126 KING LEAR [Act III 

Fair^ v. 3, '' He shall be Dauphin my boy ". Steevens adduced 
a stanza from which he said it was taken : 

" Dolphin, my boy, my boy, 
Cease, let him trot by ; 
It seemeth not that such a foe 
From me or you would fly". 

This was a stanza, he said, from a very old ballad written on 
some battle fought in France, and repeated to him by an old 
gentleman. Unfortunately no trace of this ballad is oiscover- 
able. Dolphin is an old form of Dauphin, 

94* sessa, op I an exhortation to speed. Cf. iii. 6. 72. 

99. the cat, ue, the civet-cat. 

Z04. naughty. See Glossary. 

Z06. Flibbertigibbet. The name of a fiend, probably sug- 
gested, like 'Smulkin', *Modo', *Mahu', and *Frateretto' 
(lii. 6. 6) below, by a passage in Harsnet's Declaration of Popish 
Impostures. The word, however, was fairly common at the 
time, though in different forms, e.g, * flebergebet ', and it was 
used in the sense of a gossiping or frivolous woman. Cf. Scott's 
Xenilvforthf ch. x. 

Z07. the web and the pin, an old name for cataract Cf. 
Winter's Talei i. 2. 291, '*and all eyes Blind with the web and 
pin but theirs ". 

zzo. S. Withold, Saint Vitalis, who was invoked against 
nightmare. The Folios have Swithold, a reading preserved 
by several editors. 

old, i,e. wold, a down. Old is a common provincial pro- 
nunciation; the form is often found in E. E. 

zzi. nine -fold, <<nine familiars, in the form of 'foals'" 
(Herford). 

Z14. aroint thee, begone, away with thee. The origin of 
the word is unknown. Cf. Macbeth^ i. 3. 6. 

Z20. wall-newt, the lizard; water, i,e. water-newt. 

Z22. sallets, salads: a common form in E.E. 

ditch-dog, a dead dog thrown into a ditch. 

. Z27, 128. A quotation from the romance of Sir Bevis of 
Hamptoun : 

" Rattes and myce and suche small dere 
Was his meate that seven yere ". 

deer. See Glossary. 

Z47. prevent, with the old sense of anticipating, and so 
defeating by forestalling.- 



Scene 6] NOTES 127 

15a. He said. See i. i. 148-150. 

155. outlawed from my blood. One of the legal conse- 
quences of outlawry is ** corruption of blood ", i,e, inability to 
inherit or bequeath. Cf. i Henry VI ^ iii. i. 159, "our pleasure 
is That Richard be restored to his blood ". 

In Gloucester's words ** he soug-ht my life ", Edgar has the 
first explanation of his father's attitude. 

159. I cry you mercy, I beg your pardon : a common phrase 
in the Elizabethan dramatists. Cf. iii. 2. 53. 

Z65. soothe, humour, as frequently in Shakespeare. 

Z70. Child Rowland, &c. These lines may perhaps be 
taken from the ballad of " Child Rowland and Burd Ellen ", 
fragments of which are given in Child's English and Scottish 
Btulads, 1 86 1, vol. i. Two of the lines are: 
" With^, /?, /&, and fumf 
I smell the blood of a Christian man " (p. 251). 
For British, see Introduction (2). 

Scene 6 

Edmund now appears at the height of his villainy and of 
his fortune. He has already supplanted his elder brother in 
his father's regard and has been declared heir; he now sup- 
plants his father himself and is made by Cornwall Earl of 
Gloucester. 

2. censured, judged (not necessarily judged adversely). This 
is the usual meaning in Shakespeare. Cf. the similar tendency 
in the word criticism, 

3. something fears me, frightens me somewhat. 

5. provoking, impelling, urging, inciting. 

8, 9. approves him, proves him to be. Cf. i. i. 178. 

9. intelligent, well-informed, though it may have the same 
force as in iii. i. 25 and iii. 7. 11. 

24. Edmund's plans have succeeded. Cf. iii. 3. 22, 23. 

17. comforting. See Glossary. 

Scene 6 

4. have, plural by attraction. 

6. Prateretto. See note on Flibbertigibbet, iii. 4. 106. 

6, 7. Nero . . . darkness. Said to be an allusion to Rabelais, 
Gargantua and Pantagruel, ii. 30, where Nero is described as a 
fiddler and Trajan as an angler. There is another reference to 



128 KING LEAR [Act III 

Rabelais in As You Like Jt, iii. 2. 238, " You must borrow me 

Gargfantua's mouth ". 
7. innocent, a mild term for * simpleton *, * fool \ 
X2-Z4. No, he's a yeoman . . . him. Omitted in the Quartos. 

17-55. The foul fiend ... let her 'scape ? Omitted in the 
Folios. 

ig. horse's health, the horse being specially liable to 
disease. Cf. Taming of the Shrew ^ iii. 2. 50-56. 

23, 24. Wantest thou eyes, &c. The mention of the 
* glaring ' of the foul fiend prompts Edgar to ask one of the 
" she foxes " if she wishes to be glared at (f .e. admired) during 
her triaL 

25. Come o'er the bourn, Bessy. The first line of a ballad 
by William Birche, written in 1558, the year of the queen's 
accession, and entitled A Songe beiwene the Quenes Majestie 
and Englande. It is printed in full in the Harleian Miscellany^ 
vol. X, p. 260, edition of 1813. The first lines are: 

" Come over the bom, Bessy, 
Come over the bom, Bessy, 
Swete Bessey come over to me "• 

bourn, brook : a variant of hum. 

30. Hopdance, probably suggested by *' Hoberdidance ", 
the name of another fiend m Harsnet's Declaration. Hobbidu 
dance (iv. i. 60). is apparently another form of the same word. 

30, 31. white herring, fresh herring. 

38. Bench, sit on the judge's bench. 

41, &c. Sleepest or wakest thou? Apparently anothei* 
snatch of a song. 

43. minikin, dainty, pretty. 

45. Pur! Perhaps only an imitation of the noise made by a 
cat, though, as Malone pointed out, Purre is the name of one 
of the devils mentioned in Harsnet's book. 

51. I took you for a joint-stool, a proverbial expression, 
of which the precise meaning is not now known. 

53. store. Some editions read * stone', others ' stuff '• 

56. five wits. See note, iii. 4. 54. 

57, 58. See ii. 4. 227 and 268, and iii. 2. 33. 

61. "When he exclaims in the mad scene *The little dogs' 
&c., it is passion lending occasion to imagination to make 
every creature in league against him, conjuring up ingratitude 
and insult in their least-looked-for and most galling shapes, 
searching every thread and fibre of his heart, and finding out 



Scene q NOTES 129 

the last remaining- image of respect or attachment in the bottom 
of his breast only to torture and kill it!" And again, **AU 
nature was, as he supposed, in a conspiracy against him, and 
the most trivial and insignificant creatures concerned in it were 
the most striking' proofs of its malignity and extent ". (Hazlitt.) 

68. brach, cf. i. 4. 108; lym, a bloodhound: called also a 
lycmi or lime-hound^ " from the learn or leash in which he was 
held till he was let slip ". 

69. trundle-tail, a dog* with a curled tail. 

74. thy horn is dry. The allusion is explained by the fol- 
lowing passage in Aubrey's Natural History of Wiltshire (quoted 
by Halliwell-Phillipps) : ** Till the breaking out of the Civill 
Warres, Tom o' Bedlams did trauell about the countery. They 
had been poore distracted men that had been putt into Bedlam, 
where recovering" to some sobemesse, they were licentiated to 
g-oe a begging . . . They wore about their necks a great horn 
of an oxe in a string or bawdric, which, when they came to an 
house for almes, they did wind; and they did putt the drink 

given them into this horn, whereto they did putt a stopple." 
dgar's meaning, of course, is that he has come to the end of 
his rdle. 

79. Persian, i,e. rich and gorgeous, spoken ironically. Cf. 
Horace's " Persicos apparatus ", Odes, i. 38. 

94. Stand in assured loss, will assuredly be lost Cf. line 
09, stand in hard cure^ will be hard to cure, is almost incurable, 
IV. I. 4, ii. 4. 255, &c. In this common idiom stand is an em- 
phatic substitute for the auxiliary. 

96-xoo. Oppressed . . . behind. Omitted in the Folios. 

97. sinews, used in the sense of nerves. Cf. Venus and 
AdoniSf 903, " A second fear throug'h all her sinews spread ". 

10Z-Z14. When we . • . lurk. This soliloquy is not in the 
Folios. Its genuineness has been doubted on the score of its 
style. In point of rhythm and verse mechanism generally it is 
inferior to the other rhymed passag'es in this play. But on the 
other hand it has much closer connection with the action of the 
play than an interpolation would be likely to have, and certain 

garts, e,g^, **he childed as I father'd", are undoubtedly in the 
hakespearian manner. The poorness of the opening lines 
prejudices us against the passag-e, but there is nothing" to dis- 
prove its g-enuineness. 

no. bewray. Cf. ii. i. 107, * Show thyself when false 
opinion, which now does thee wrong, thinks of thee justly and 
recalls thee to reconciliation '. 

Z13. What will hap more, whatever else happens. 



ijo KING LEAR [Act III Scene 7 

Scene 7 

The Gloucester plot again supplements the main story. The 
villainy of Edmund is at last unmasked, but not before Glou- 
cester, like Lear, has suffered by filial treachery. / His muti- 
lation on the stage has been the subject of murni criticism* 
Johnson considered it '*an act too horrid to be endured in 
dramatic exhibition"; and Coleridge declared that *Mn this 
one point the tragic in this play has been urged beyond tha 
outermost mark and ne plus ultra of the dramatic". Thero 
is no denying the repulsiveness of the blinding of Gloucester. 
It is no extenuation that there are other instances, as several, 
editors point out, of mutilation on the Elizabethan stage. Yet 
it may be urged that a bold and direct treatment of this second 
case of barbarity was necessary after the terrible scene on the 
heath, as a bare narration of it would not in the circumstances 
have conveyed an adequate impression. 

zo. bound, ready, prepared : as perhaps also in 1. 7. 

za. my lord of Gloucester, Edmund's new title (see iti. 5. 14) s 
purposely contrasted with Oswald's use of the title. 

z6. questrists, searchers ; not found again in Shakespeare. 

17. lords dependants. Some editors read lord*s dependants^ 
i.e, Gloucester's dependants. The reading in the text means 
lords dependent directly on Lear. 

33. pass upon, pass sentence upon. Cf. Measure /or Measure^ 
ii. I. 19, "The jury, passing on the prisoner's life". 

28. corky, shrivelled, withered with age. 

38. quicken, come to life. 

39. favours, features: *'the features of your host*. See 
Glossary. 

42. simple, straightforward. This is the reading of the 
Quartos: the Folios read simple-answer' d, 

46. set down, written. 

53. I am tied tc the stake. Cf. Madteth^ v. 7. i, 2: 
*' They have tied me to a stake : I cannot fly, 
But, bear-like, I must fight the course". 

The course is a technical term in bear-baiting for each attack 
of the dogs: cf. * round' in b6xing, *bout', &c. 

55, &c. Gloucester is turned to bay. 

56. Pluck out his . . . eyes. One of the most striking of 
the many instances of dramatic irony in the play. Gloucester 
unwittingly mentions his own fate. 

60. stelled, starry. See Glossary. 



Act IV Scene x] NOTES 131 

6a. stem. The Quartos have deam, — an obsolete word 
meaning *dark', 'drear', *dire*, — which occurs also in 
Pericles, iii. 15. 

64. All cruels else subscribed, all their other cruelties 
being condoned. Cruels is an instance of the Elizabethan use 
of an adjective as a noun: see Kellner, § 236. Subscribed, 
yielded, hence condoned, forgiven: cf. i. 2. 19. The Folios 
read sidhscribe, after which some editors place the second 
inverted comma. 

86-89. The climax of Gloucester's agony and of Regan's 
brutality. 

88. overture, .disclosure. 

gz. prosper. Cf. the transitive use in iv. 6. 30. 

g8-zo6. I '11 never • . . help him. Omitted in the Folios. 

zoo. old, usual, natural. 

Z05. flax and white of eggs, a common application at this 
time for wounds. 



Act IV— Scene t 

This scene is a direct sequel to the closing passage of the 
previous act. The help that Edgar gives to his father^ who 
IS in a sense the cause of the sufferings of both, is an exact 
counterpart to Cordelia's solicitude for Lear. 

z. known to be, conscious of being. 

6. laughter, ue. a happy or better condition. 

6-9. Welcome . . • blasts. Omitted in the Quartos. 

az. Our means secure us, &c. Our resources make us 
confident and careless, and our unalloyed defects prove our 
benefits. For this common E. E. sense of secure, cf. Othello, 
i. 3. 10, "I do not so secure me in the error"; and for com^ 
modities, cf. 2 Henry IV, i. 2. 278, "I will turn diseases 
to commodity". 

23. abused, deceived. Cf. iv. 7. 53, 77, and v. i. 11. This 
sense is retained in the negative dis^use, 

34. See iii. 4. 133, 134, and 154. 

53. daub it further, keep up the disguise. 

60. Obidicut, probably suggested by HoberdiaU, one of 
Harsnet's fiends. 

00, 6z. Hobbididance. See note, iii. 6. 30. 



13a KING LEAR [Act IV 

62. mopping and mowing, making grimaces: the two 
words are practically synonymous. Cf. Tempesty iv. 47, 
**Will be here with mop and mow". Malone quotes from 
Harsnet, ** If she have a little helpe of the mother, epilepsie, or 
cramp, to teach her . . . make antike faces, grinne, mow and 
mop like an ape, then no doubt the young girle is owleblasted 
and possessed". 

69. slaves, treats as a slave, makes subservient to his desire. 
This passage is Gloucester's counterpart to Lear's utterance 
on pomp, iii. 4. 28-36. 

Scene 2 

The clue to the denouement is now given in the adulterous 
love of Goneril for Edmund, and in the conduct of Albany. 
When we last saw Albany (i. 4) he appeared in an unfavour- 
able light as a passive witness of his wife's schemes, or at best 
only able to hint his disapproval; and in this scene Goneril 
begins by treating him as a "milk-livered man". But the 
monstrous conduct of Goneril awakens him to think for him- 
self and to take up firmly a line of his own. 

2. Not met us. Cf. 1. 53 and ii. i. 75. 

12. CO wish, cowardly. 

14. Our wishes, &c. The wishes we expressed on the way 
hither may be realized. 

28. My fool usurps my body. The reading of the Folio, 
There are three distinct readings of this phrase in the Quartos. 
The first Quarto (uncorrected) has ** My foot usurps mv body "; 
the first Quarto (corrected) has " A fool usurps my bea "; wnile 
the second Quarto reads ** My foot usurps my head ". 

29. Goneril refers to Albany's indifference to her. This 
proverbial expression is given in tlie Proverbs of John Heywood^ 
1546, " It is ... A poor dog that is not worth the whistlings" 
(ed. Sharman, 1874, p. 76). 

31-50. I fear . . . deep. Omitted in the Folios. Also 11. 53-59, 
"that not know'st" . . . "does he so?", and 11. 62-69, "Thou 
changed" . . . "What news?" 

31. fear, fear for. Cf. Richard Illy i. i. 137, "his physicians 
fear him mightily ". 

32. it. Cf. i. 4. 206. 

33. border'd certain, contained iwth certainty. 

34. sliver, break off, strip off. Cf. Macbethy iv. i. 28, " slipa 
of yew Sliver'd in the moon's eclipse". 

39. savour, have a relish for. 



Scene 3] NOTES 133 

42. head-lugg'd, drawn by the head. 

50. Milk-liver'd. Cf. ii. 2. 15. 

54. villains, &c. Obviously a reference to Lear. 

58. moral, moralizing'. Cf. the use of moral as a verb in As 
You Like Ity ii. 7. 29, ** I did hear The motley fool thus moral 
on the time ". 

60. Proper, its own, innate; deformity, moral deformity, 
depravity. 

62. self-cover'd, i,e, having- the self covered, having the 
** fiend" covered by the "woman's shape". 

63. feature, outward form. See Glossary. 
Were 't my fitness, were it fit for me. 

65. apt, ready. 

68. your manhood! mew! The uncorrected sheets of the 
first Quarto, and the second Quarto, read^owr manhood now, — 
a reading adopted by some editors ; the corrected sheets read 
your manhood meWy — explained as 'suppress, restrain your 
manhood*. The reading in the text, your manhood/ mew! is 
that given in the second edition of the * Cambridge Shake- 
speare' (1891), in accordance with a suggestion in Mr. Daniel's 
introduction to the facsimile reprint of the first Quarto (1885). 
/ Here m£w is an interjection of disgust and contempt. There 
are many contemporary instances of it. 

73. remorse, pity, as generally in Shakespeare. 

74. bending, turning, directing: cf. ii. i. 46. 

79. nether, earthly. 

83. One way, in so far as Cornwall has been got out of the 
road — an idea to which she reverts in lines 87, 88, "another 
way, the news is not so tart ". 

85. all the building in my fancy, all my castles in the air % 
the fact that she is a widow and that Gloucester is with her 
may frustrate all my hopes and make life hateful to me. 

90. back, ue» going back. 

Scene 3 

This scene is omitted in the Folios. It is accordingly not 
essential to the development of the plot. But it stands in 
dramatic contrast to the previous scene, while the description 
of Cordelia's grief on learning what has happened is one of 
the most beautiful of the gentler passages in the play. 

19. Were like, a better way, were like sunshine and rain, 

^M906) L 



154 KING LEAR [Act IV 

but in a more beautiful manner. Several explanations and 
emendations of this difficult phrase have been given. War- 
burton read "like a wetter May", and Malone "like a better 
May"; but neither of these gives better sense than the origfinal 
reading. Many editors omit the comma after * like'. 

31. clamour moisten'd, i.e. tears succeeded her cries of 
indignation at her sisters. This is Capell's emendation of the 
quarto reading", And damour moistened her. 

32-35. A recurrence to the astrological theories e3q>ressed 
earlier in the play by Gloucester. 

34. self, $.e, self-same. Cf. i. i. 62. 

4a. elbows, jostles, torments; literally ' thrusts with the 
elbow'. 

, 44. foreign casualties, hazards abroad. 

51. dear, important. Cf. i. 4. 263 and iii. i. 19. 

Scene 4 

This scene likewise does not help on the action of the drama; 
but it reintroduces Cordelia, who has not appeared since the 
very first scene. 

3. fumiter, fumitory. See Glossary. 

4. hor-docks, the reading- of the Quartos ; the Folios have 
hardokes and hardocks. The plant has not been identified. 
Many editions adopt the emendation burdocks, 

cuckoo-flowers, a name gfiven to several wild flowers 
which bloom when the cuckoo is heard: here probably the 
cowslip. 

6. century. Generally defined as 'a troop of a hundred 
men ', as in Coriolanus^ i. 7. 3. But century was an old variant 
oi sentry — the New English Dictionary cites an example of this 
form as late as 1759 — ^and this is perhaps the meaning of the 
word here. 

10. helps, cures, a common sense in E. E. and later. Cf. 
Tennyson's Lodltsley HaUy 1. 105: 

" But the jingling of the guinea helps the hurt that Honour 
feels ". 

15. anguish ; used commonly in £.£. of physical as well as 
mental suffering. Cf. iv. 6. 6. 

26. important, importunate. Cf. Much Adoy li. i. 74, "if 
the prince be too important, tell him there is measure in every 
thing: ". 



Scene 6] NOTES 135 

Scene 6 

This scene likewise does not advance the plot; but it prepares 
us for the d^ouement by showing* the increasing jealousy of 
Goneril and Regan. 

13. nighted, benighted, darkened. 

18. The fidelity of Oswald to Goneril is the only thing that at 
all relieves the utter baseness and blackness of his character. 

25. oeillades, amorous glances. See Glossary. 

29. take this note, take note of this. 

Scene 6 

This important scene is divided roughly into three parts. 
The first, which contains the famous description of Dover Cliff, 
is a direct continuation of the opening scene of this act; the 
second brings into comparison Lear and Gloucester in the 
height of their suffering; and the third, unlike the others, is 
devoted mainly to the unravelling of the plot. 

xo. better spoken. See note, i. i. 266. 

IX. The following criticism of the description of Dover Cliff 
was passed by Johnson: ** The description is certainly not mean, 
but I am far from thinking it wrought to the utmost excellence 
of poetry. He that looks from a precipice finds himself assailed 
by one great and dreadful imaee of irresistible destruction. 
But this overwhelming idea is dissipated and enfeebled from 
the instant that the mind can restore itself to the observation 
of particulars, and diffuse its attention to distinct objects. The 
enumeration of the choughs and crows, the samphire-man, and 
the fishers, counteracts the great effect of the prospect, as it 
peoples the desert of intermediate vacuity, and stops the mind in 
the rapidity of its descent through emptiness and horror." A 
similar opinion is recorded by Boswell in his Li/e 0/ Johnson, 
"No, Sir; it should be all precipice — all vacuum. The crows 
impede your fall. The diminished appearance of the boats, and 
other circumstances, are all very good description, but do not 
impress the mind at once with the horrible idea of immense 
height. The impression is divided; you pass on, by compu- 
tation, from one stage of the tremendous space to another." 
This criticism amounts simply to a condemnation of the 
'romantic' method of description. The 'classical' manner 
for which Johnson here pleads aims at a unity of impression 
by means of generalized statements. Avoiding the mention of 
particulars, so as not to give them undue importance or to take 
away from the general effect, it leaves these particulars to be 
fiUea in by the reader's imagination. The romantic manner, 



136 KING LEAR [Act IV 

on the other hand, follows an opposite course, and trusts to 
particulars as a means of conveying* the g-eneral impression. 
There can be no question which manner is the more vivid in 
its effects, and accordingly better suited for the drama. A 
generalized description could present only a vague image of 
altitude. It would never make us feel the giddy height. 

15. samphire, sea-fennel, an herb which grows on cliffs and 
is used for pickling. The gathering of samphire was a regular 
trade in Shakespeare's time, and Dover Cliff appears to have 
been particularly famous for the herb. Cf. Drayton's Poly' 
olbion^ the Eighteenth Song (Spenser Society Publications, 1889, 
p. 300): 

" Rob Dovers neighboring cleeues of sampyre, to excite 
His dull and sickly taste, and stirre vp appetite "• 

The common Elizabethan spelling was sampire (so the Quartos 
and Folios). 

ig. cock, i,e, cock-boat. 

21. unnumber'd, innumerable. Cf. i. i. 253. 

28. another purse. See iv. i. 65. 

33, 34. Note the confusion of constructions. 

39. My snuff, the useless remnant of my life. The metaphor 
is taken from the smoking wick of a candle. 

42, 43. The illusion of death may actually cause death. For 
conceit^ see Glossary. 

46. Edgar here assumes a different character, and pretends 
that he has come upon Gloucester at the bottom of the cliff. 

47. pass, i.e, pass away. Cf. v. 3. 313. 
53. at each, one on the top of the other. 

57. bourn, boundary, ue. to the sea. 

58. a-height, i.e, on height, on high, aloft; shrill-gorged, 
shrill-throated. 

71. whelk' d, rugged as with whelks. 

7a. father, a term of address to an old man, though used by 
Edgar to insinuate his relationship. See v. 3. 192. 

73. clearest, most pure, as frequently in Shakespeare. Cf. 
Tempest y iii. 3. 82, "a clear life ". 

8z. The safer sense, i,e* sanity: safety sounder, saner. 

87, &c. Lear's thought wanders from collecting recruits 
("press-money") to archery, then to mouse-catching, then to 
battle, then back ag^in to archery and hawking, and then to 
sentry duty. 



Scene 6] NOTES 137 

87, 88. crow -keeper, one who keeps crows off fields. The 
comparison to a crow-keeper appears to have been common 
in describing' an awkward archer: cf. Ascham, ToxophUus 
(ed. Arber, p. 145), "An other coureth downe, and layeth out 
his buttockes, as though he shoulde shoote at crowes ". 

88. clothier's yard, a * cloth-yard shaft*, a common name 
for an arrow of the long-bow. Cf. the ballad of Chevy Chase i 

** An arow that a cloth-yarde was lang" 
To the harde stele halyde he ". 
Cf. also the Lay of the Last Minstrel^ iv. 15. 
91. brown bills, halberds painted brown, used by foot-soldiers» 

9a. clout, the mark shot at in archery. Cf. Love's Labour 's 
Lost, iv. 1. 136, " Indeed, a' must shoot nearer, or he'll never hit 
the clout ". 

97. white hairs, &c., had the wisdom of age while yet a boy» 

106. trick, characteristic, peculiarity. • 

109. What was thy cause ? What were you accused of? 

118. piece, equivalent to * master-piece'. Cf. Tempest^ i. 2. 56, 
•*Thy mother was a piece of virtue", and Antony and Cleopatra^ 
v. 2. 99, "to imagfine An Antony, were nature's piece 'gainst 
fancy ". 

121. squiny, squint, make eyes at. Lear does not yet re- 
cognize that Gloucester is blind. He is incapable in his mad- 
ness of sympathizing with, or even appreciating', Gloucester's 
fate. 

129. arc you there with me? is that what you mean? 

137. handy-dandy. A children's game in which the on- 
lookers are asked to say in which hand an object, that has 
frequently been chang-ed from one hand to the other, finally 
remains : hence equivalent here to * choose which you will '. 

146-15 1. Plate sin . . . lips. Omitted in the Quartos. 

149. able, warrant, vouch for. 

164. The " reason " in Lear's madness is but fitful. He has 
no sooner begun to moralize to Gloucester on the folly of this 
world than his thoughts again wander, 
this', this is. 

block, probably the shape of a hat : hence the succeeding' 
thought, the hat being of felt. 

176. a man of salt, i,e. a man of tears. Cf. Hamlet, i. 2. 
154, "the salt of most unrighteous tears"; and Coriolanus^ 
V. 6. 93, " for certain drops of salt ". 

189. speed you, ue. God speed you. 



138 KING LEAR [Act IV Scene 7 

igi. vulgar, cominoiily known. 

194. the main descry, &c., the appearance of the main body 
is hourly expected. 

203. art, acquired faculty, experience, 
feeling, heart-felt : a quasi-passive sense. 

204. pregnant, ready, disposed. Cf. ii. i. 76. 

205. biding, ue* biding-place. 

207. To boot, and boot. "By the repetition Gloucester 
wishes to convey both meanings of 'to boot', ^in addition (to my 
thanks) ' and * (the bounty of heaven) be your help ' " (Herford). 

208. framed, formed. 

210. thyself remember, remember and confess thy sins. 

216. Ed^ar adopts the Somersetshire dialect* It is com- 
monly put into the mouths of rustics in the Elizabethan drama. 
Chill is a contraction of * ich will ', chud of ' ich would ' ; while 
the V in vurthety volky &c., represents the south-western pro- 
nunciation of^ Che vor ye stands for *I warn you', anci ise 
for * I shall '. 

222. costard, a humorous term for the head, literally a large 
kind of apple. Cf. the modem * nut '. 

ballow, cudgel: a dialectal word. 

226. foins, thrusts in fencing. 

231. British. So the Quartos. The Folios read * English*. 
Cf. iii. 4. 172. 

239. Leave, by your leave. A similar expression occurs in 
Cymheliney iii. 2. 35, "Good wax, thy leave", and in Twelfth 
Nighty ii. 5. 103, "By your leave, wax". 

249. servant, a regular term for a lover. 

251. undistinguished space, undefinable scope. For undts- 
tingT^ished =:undistmguishahlef cf. i. i. 253. 
will, desire. 
254. rake up, cover over, bury. 

257. death -practised, whose death was plotted. Cf. i. 2. 166. 
260. ingenious, sensitive, lively. 

Scene 7 

This is another of the great scenes of the play. In point of 
bearing on the action of the drama, it is less important than 
i. 4 or ii. 4, the scenes with which it ranks in dramatic power. 
But the pLay contains no more affecting picture than that of 



Act V Scene i] NOTES ij9 

Cordelia's care for Lear, his restoration to reason in her 
presence, and his recognition of her. 

6. suited, clothed. 

7. memories, memorials: abstract for concrete. 

9. Yet, already; my made intent, my plan, intention. 

17. child-changed, changed by the conduct of his children. 

14. temperance, calmness. 

35. perdu. See Glossary. 

38. Against, at, before, over against; as commonly in E. E. 

4a. all, altogether; used adverbially. Cf. i. !• 93. 

47. that, so that. 

53. abused, deceived. Cf. line 77 and iv. i. 23. 

65. mainly, perfectly. See Glossary. 

67. nor . . . not, one of the commonest forms in E. E. of 
the double negative. Cf. v. 3. 290. 

70. " The * so I am ' of Cordelia gushes from her heart like 
a torrent of tears, relieving it of a weight of love and of sup- 
posed ingratitude which had pressed upon it for years" 
(Hazlitt). 

80. even o'er, account for, fill in fully, remember clearly. 
The metaphor is apparently from the language of accountants* 
Craig compares Macbeth^ v. 8. 60-62 : 

** We shall not spend a large expense of time 
Before we reckon with your several loves, 
And make us even with you ". 

85-97. Holds it true . . . fought. Omitted in the Folios, 
like the concluding lines of iii. 7. 

91. It will be remembered that Kent had declared his inten- 
tion to *' shape his old course in a country new " (i. i. 181). 

96. period, end aimed at. Cf. Henry VIII^ i. 2. 209, 
'' There 's his period. To sheathe his knife in us ". 



Act V— Scene 1 

This scene is a preparation for the catastrophe. It shows 
how the evil-doers are hastening to their destruction. What- 
ever Albany's sympathy for Lear, he has to oppose the French 
invasion; but his life is plotted against by Edmund, whose 
patriotism is subordinate to his ambition to assume the 



I40 KING LEAR [Act V 

supreme power; and Groneril and Regan are now so bitterly 
divided by jealousy of Edmund that the issue of the battle is 
to them of secondary interest. 

4. constant pleasure, fixed, final resolve. Cf. i. i. 36. 

13. bosom'd, in her confidence. Cf. iv. 5. 26. 

as far as we call hers, as far as anything is hers, to the 
utmost. 

16. Fear, doubt Cf. iii. i. 47, and contrast iii. 5. 3 and 
iv. 2. 31. 

23. Where I could not be honest, &c. In these words Albany 
gives the explanation of his weakness at the beginning of the 
play. But he is not the weak character that Goneril thought 
him, or that he is so often said to be. 

26. holds, emboldens: ''not in so far as France emboldens 
{ue, supports) the king". 

32. ancient of war, experienced soldiers, veterans. 

36. convenient, befitting, expedient. 

50. o'erlook, i.e. *look o'er'. Cf. L 2. 33. 

54. greet the time, meet the occasion. 

56. jealous, suspicious. 

61. carry out my side, succeed in my plan, win my oWect. 
The metaphor is taken from games. Mason quotes from Mas- 
singer's Great Dtike of Florence (iv. 2) : 

'* If I hold your cards, I shall pull down the side ; 
I am not good at the game". 

68. Shall, i.e. they shall. Cf. i. i. 204. 

69. Stands on me, requires me. See note, iii. 6. 93. 

Scene 2 

Mr. Spedding suggested {New Shdkspere Society* s Transac- 
tionsy 1877-79, pt. i) that the acts of King Lear have been 
wrongly divided, and that the fourth act ends at the fourth line 
of this scene. According to his arrangement, the battle would 
take place between the fourth and fifth acts. He was prompted 
to this suggestion by the unsatisfactory description of the battle 
compared with other similar descriptions in Shakespeare. " In 
other cases a few skilful touches bring the whole battle before 
us — 9k few rapid shiftings from one part of the field to another, 
a few hurried greetings of friend or foe, a few short passages 
of struggle, pursuit, or escape, give us token of the conflict 
which is raging on all sides ; and, when the hero falls, we feel 
that his army is defeated. A page or two does it; but it is 



Scene 3] NOTES 141 

done/' But in this scene *'the army so long* looked for, and 
on which everything' depends, passes over the stage, and all 
our hopes and sympathies go with it. Four lines are spoken. 
The scene does not change; but 'alarums' are heard, and 
* afterwards a retreat ', and on the same field over which that 
great army has this moment passed, fresh and full of hope, 
reappears, with tidings that all is lost, the same man who last 
left the stage to follow and fight in it." The suggested re- 
arrangement is plausible, for it would remove the defects 
alluded to without altering a word of the text. But there is 
nothing to show that the scene is not as Shakespeare left it. 
A fuller description of the battle would have tended to divert 
the attention from the main interest of the story. Indeed the 
dramatic purpose would have been as adequately fulfilled by 
a bare narration of the result of the battle. Moreover, the 
circumstances of the play demand the sympathy of the audi- 
ence for the French army rather than the British, and the 
sturdy Elizabethan patriotism probably weighed with Shake- 
speare in making the description so meagre. 

II. Ripeness, readiness. Cf. Hamlet^ v. 2. 234, "if it be 
not now, yet it will come ; the readiness is all ". 

Scene 3 

"The wheel is come full circle." All the chief characters, 
who, contrary to Shakespeare's general custom, had been 
brought on to the stage at the very beginning of the play to 
participate in an event on which the whole play turns, re- 
appear in this last scene to " taste the wages of their virtue 
and the cup of their deservings". The denouement, as in so 
many of Shakespeare's plays, is rapidly achieved, and some- 
what resembles, with its bustle and wealth of incident, the 
closing scene of Hamlet \ and, as in Hamlet^ the guiltless fall 
with the guilty. 

2. their greater pleasures, the wills of these greater persons. 

3. censure, pass sentence on. Cf. iii. 5. 2. 
x8. packs, confederacies. Cf. iii. i. 26. 

23. fire us hence like foxes; alluding to the practice of 
smoking foxes out of their holes. 

24. good-years. See Glossary. 

35. write happy, call yourself happy. Cf. AlVs Well, ii. 3. 208, 
** I must tell thee, sirrah, I write man". 

49. To pluck . . . side, to win the affection of the common 
people. 

50. impress'd, pressed into our service; lances, i,e, lancers. 



143 KING LEAR [Act V 

65. immediacy, close connection with nothing intervening, 
f.r. direct tenure of authority. 

68. addition, title. Cf. i. i. 139. 

72. That eye, &c. ** Alluding* to the proverb: 'Love being 
jealous makes a good eye look asquint' " (Steevens). 

74. stomach. The stomach was supposed to be the seat of 
anger, as the liver was of courage (ii. 2. 15). Cf. Titus An-' 
dronicuSf iiL i. 234, **To ease their stomachs with their bitter 
tongues". 

76. the walls are thine; apparently a metaphor signifying 
complete surrender. Wright thinks the words refer to Keg^n's 
castle, mentioned in line 245. Theobald conjectured '' they are 
aU thine". 

79. The let-alone, the prohibition. 

As events prove, Gonenl has already taken means to frus- 
trate Regan's wishes. 

83. attaint, impeachment. See Glossary. 

X03. virtue, valour, as frequently in £. E. Cf. Latin virtus* 

114. cope, commonly used transitively in E.E., as here. 

129. Le, It is my privilege, as I am a knight, to engage you, 
who are a traitor.' 

X32. fire-new, brand-new ; fresh from- the fire or forge. 

Z37. descent, "that to which one descends, the lowest part": 
the only known instance of this use. 

138. toad-spotted, treasonable as the toad is spotted. 

143. say. See Glossary. 

144. nicely. See Glossary. 

Edmund's character is not all bad. He could have refused 
to fight a nameless antagonist, but he manfully will not avail 
himself of this excuse. His subsequent statement, **Some 
good I mean to do, despite of mine own nature", is not out 
of keeping with his character, as it would have been with 
Goneril's or Regan's. Great as is his villainy, he had to 
some extent been prompted to it bjr the disabilities which he 
incurred by his birth and the taunts he had to suffer even 
from his father. 

147. hell-hated, hated like hell. 

151. Save him, save him! Albany is anxious not to have 
Edmund killed on the spot, so that his guilt may be made 
known before his death. 

practice, false play, treachery. Cf. i. 2. 166. 

x6o. Ask me not, &c. The Folios assign this speech to 



Scene 3] NOTES 143 

Edmund, the Quartos gire it to Goneril, and modern editors 
are divided in their choice. ThosLe who follow the Folios ask 
why the question, "Know'st tliou this paper?" should be 
addressed to Goneril, considerine Albany has already said 
to her, " I perceive you know it . But this objection is not 
conclusive. 

194. success, issue, result. Of. i. 2. 129. 

Z96. flaw'd, broken. Cf. ii. 4. 282. 

204-221. This would . . . slave. Omitted in the Folios. 

204. period, termination : note the different sense in iv. 7. 96. 

205. but another, &c. ; but another story, amplifying* what 
is already too much, would make what is much even more, and 
so pass the extreme limits. 

234. manners, treated as a singular; but contrast i. 4. 160 
and iv. 6. 239. 

235. It is fitting that at this juncture attention should be 
drawn to Lear by Kent, who at the beginning of the play had 
professed his constant devotion to the king. 

255. fordid, destroyed. Cf. line 291. 

262. stone, a crystal mirror. 

263. the promised end, of the world. Mason compares 
S. Markf xiii. 12 and 19. For image of that horror^ cf. Macbeth^ 
ii. 3. 83, " up, up, and see The great doom's image ! " 

285. Lear's thoughts again begin to wander. He cannot 
realize what Kent's devotion has been, and even the announce- 
ment of Regan's and Goneril's death has no effect. 

288. your first of difference, beginningof your change. 

290. Nor no man else, i.e. No, nor is any other man 
welcome. 

30Z. boot, increase, enhancement. 

305. poor fool, i,e. Cordelia : a common term of endearment. 
Some {e,g. Sir Joshua Reynolds) think that Lear refers to his 
Fool: but the Fool was not 'hanged'; he has long since passed 
out of the play (iii. 6); and it is not likely that Lear would 
think of him when dying for grief at the death of Cordelia. 

313. pass. Cf. iv. 6. 47. 

322. My master, i,e, Lear. Kent's devotion is unbroken. 

323, &c. This concluding speech is given in the Quartos to 
Albany, in the Folios to Edgar. It is assigned more fittingly to 
the latter. 



APPENDIX A 



THE SOURCES OF THE PLOT 

The Lear story is here given as told by Raphad Hofin- 
shed in his Chronicles {\f^TJ^ second edition, 1587), by 
H logins in the Mirror for Magistrates (1574), and by 
Spenser in the Faerie Oueene (1^90), and is followed by 
the passage in Sidnev^s Arcadia (1590) which is the 
undoubted original of the Gloucester story. 

1, Holintbed't Chronicles. — The Hisiorie of Britain^ 
book ii, ch. 5: second edition/ 15S7, pp. 12, 13. 

Leir the sonne of Baldud was admitted nikr ouer the Britaines in 
the yeare of the world 3io5« at what time Joas reigned in Juda. This 
Leir was a prince of rig:ht noble demeanor, goueming his land and 
subjects in great wealth. He made the towne of Caerleir now called 
I^cester, which standeth vpon the riner of Sore. It is written that he 
had by his wife three daughters without other issue, whose names were 
Gonorilla, Reg^an. and Cordeilla, which daughters he greatly loued. 
but specially Cordeilla the yoongest farre aboue the two elder. When 
thif Leir therefore was come to great yeres, and began to waxe vn- 
weldie through age, he thought to vnderstand the affections of his 
daughters towards him, and preferre hir whome he best loued, to the 
succession ouer the kingdome. Whervpon he first asked Gononlla the 
eldest, how well she loued him: who calling hir gods to record, pro- 
tested that she loued him more than hir owne life, which by right and 
reason should be most deere vnto hir. With which answer the father 
being well pleased, turned to the second, and demanded of hir how 
well she loued him : who answered (confirming hir saiengs with great 
othes) that she loued him more than toong could expresse, and farre 
aboue all other creatures of the world. 

Then called he his yoongest daughter Cordeilla before him, and 
asked of hir what account she made of him, vnto whome she made 
this answer as followeth : " Knowing the great loue and fatherlie zeale 
that you haue alwaies borne towards me (for the which I male not 
answere you otherwise than I thinke, and as my conscience leadeth me) 
I protest vnto you, that I haue loued you euer, and shall continuallie 
(wnile I Hue) loue you as my naturall father. And if you would more 

1 The evidence of other plays shows that Shakespeare used the second edition : 
see SArtks/tn's /fclmsM, Tkt CkronicU and tie Historical Plays com^argd^ 
By IV, G, BoswellStotu. 1896. 

144 



APPENDIX A 145 

vnderstand of the loue that I beare you, assertaine your selfe, that so 
much as you haue, so much you are worth, and so much I loue you, 
and no more." The father being nothing content with this answere, 
married his two eldest daughters, the one vnto Henninus the duke of 
Comewail, and the other vnto Maglanus the duke of Albania, betwixt 
whome he willed and ordeined that his land should be deuided after 
his death, and the one halfe thereof immediatelie should be assigned 
to them in hand: but for the third daughter Cordeilla he reserued 
nothing. 

Nevertheless it fortuned that one of the princes of Gallia (which now 
is called France) whose name was Aganippus, hearing of the beautie, 
womanhood, and good conditions of the said Cordeilla, desired to haue 
hir in mariage, and sent ouer to hir father, requiring that he might 
haue hir to wife: to whome answer was made, that he might haue 
bis daughter, but as for anie dower he could haue none, for all was 
promised and assured to hir other sisters already. Aganippus not- 
withstanding this answer of deniall to receiue anie thing by way of 
dower with Cordeilla, tooke hir to wife, onlie moued thereto (I saie) 
for respect of hir person and amiable vertues. This Aganippus was 
one of the twelue kings that ruled Gallia in those dales, as in the British 
historie it is recorded. But to proceed. 

After that Leir was fallen into age, the two dukes that had married 
his two eldest daughters, thinking it long yer the gouemment of the 
land did come to their hands, arose against him in armour, and reft from 
him the gouemance of the land, vpon conditions to be continued for 
terme of Ufe: by the which he was put to his portion, that is, to liue 
after a rate assigned to him for the maintenance of his estate, which in 
processe of time was diminished as well by Maglanus as by Henninus. 
But the greatest griefe that Leir tooke, was to see the vnkindnesse of his 
daughters, which seemed to thinke that all was too much which their 
father had, the same being neuer so little : in so muche that going from 
the one to the other, he was brought to that miserie, that scarsUe they 
would allow him one seruaunt to wait vpon him. 

In the end, such was the vnkindnesse, or (as I maie saie) the 
vnnaturalnesse which he found in his two daughters, notwithstanding 
their faire and pleasant words vttered in time past, that being con- 
streined of necessitie, he fled the land, & sailed into Gallia, there to 
seeke some comfort of his yongest daughter Cordeilla, whom before 
time he hated. The ladie Cordeilla hearing that he was arriued in 
poore estate, she first sent to him priuiUe a certeine summe of monie to 
apparell himselfe withall, and to reteine a certeine number of seruants 
that might attend vpon him in honorable wise, as apperteined to the 
estate which he had borne: and then so accompanied, she appointed 
him to come to the court, which he did, and was so ioifiillie, honorablie, 
and louinglie receiued, both by his sonne in law Aganippus, and also 
by his daughter Cordeilla, that his hart was greatlie comforted: for 
he was no lesse honored, than if he had beene king of the whole 
countrie himselfe. 

Now when he had informed his sonne in law and his daughter in 
what sort he had beene vsed by his other daughters, Aganippus caused 
a mightie armie to be put in a readinesse, and likewise a great nauie of 
ships to be rigged, to passe ouer into Britaine with Leir his father in 
law, to see him againe restored to his kingdome. It was accorded, thai 



146 KING LEAR 

CordeiUa shotild also go with him to take possession of the land, the 
which he promised to leaue vnto hir, as tht rightAili inheritour after 
his decesse, notwithstanding any former grant miEuie to hir sisters or to 
their husbands in anie maner of wise. 

Herevpon, when this anuie and nauie of ships were readie, Leir and 
his daughter Cordeilla with hir husband tooke the sea, and arriuing in 
Britaine, fought with their enimies, and discomfited them in battel!, in 
the which Maglanus and Henninus were slaine: and then was Leir 
restored to his kingdome, which he ruled after this by the space of two 
veeres, and then died, fortie yeeres after he first began to reigne. His 
bodie was buried at Leicester in a vaut vnder the cl:^ell of the riuer of 
Sore beneath the towne. 

TM^ Sixt Chapter. — Cordeilla the yoongest daughter of Leir was 
admitted Q. and supreme gouemesse of Britaine in the yeere of the 
world 3155, before the bylding of Rome ^ ; Uzia was then reigning in 
Juda, and Jeroboam ouer IsraeU. This Cordeilla after hir fathers 
deceasse ruled the land of Britaine right worthilie during the space of 
fine yeeres, in which meane time hir husband died, and then about the 
end of those fine yeeres, hir two nephewes Margan and Cunedag, 
sonnes to hir aforesaid sisters, disdaining to be vnder the gouernment 
of a woman, leuied warre against hir, and destroied a great part of 
the land, and finallie tooke hir prisoner, and laid hir fast in ward, 
wherewith she tooke suche griefe, being a woman of a manlte courage, 
and despairing to recouer libertie, there she slue hirselfe, when she had 
reigned (as before is mentioned) the tearme of fine yeeres. 

II. The Mirror for Magistrates. — From the story of 
Queene Cordila, written by John Higgins: ed. Haslewood, 
1815, vol. i, pp. 124-132. 

6. My grandsire Bladud hight, that found the bathes by skill, 
A fethered King that practis'd high to soare, 

Whereby bee felt the fall, God wot against his will. 

And neuer went, road, raygnd, nor spake, nor flew no more. 

After whose death my father Leire therefore 

Was chosen King, by right apparent he)rre, 

Which after built the towne of Leircestere. 

7. Hee had three daughters, first and eld'st hight Gonerell, 
Next afler her his yonger Ragan was begot : 

The third and last was I the yongest, nam'd Cordell, 
Vs all our father Leire did loue to well, God wot 
But minding her that lou'd him best to note, 
Because hee had no sonne t'enioy his land, 
Hee thought to guerdon most where fauour most hee £and. 

8. What though I yongest were, yet men mee iudg'd more ¥die 
Than either Gonerell or Ragan more of age. 

And fairer fane: wherefore my sisters did despise 
My grace and giefts, and sought my wrecke to wage. 
But yet though vice on vertue dye with rage. 
It cannot keepe her vndemeath to drownc : 
For still she flittes aboue, and reaps renowne. 



APPENDIX A 14^ 

91 My fiuher thought to wed vs vnto princdy peeres, 
And vnto them and theirs deuide and part the land. 
For both my sisters first hee cal'd (as nrst their yeares 
Requir'd), their minds, and loue, and fauoure t'vnderstand. 
(Quoth hee) all doubts of duty to aband, 

I must assay your friendly faithes to proue: 
My daughters, tell mee how you doe mee loue. 

xa Which when they aunswerd him they lou'd their father more 
Then they themselues did loue, or any worldly wight, 
He praised them, and sayd hee would therefore 
The louing kindnes they deseru'd in fine requite. 
So found my sisters fauour in his sight. 

By flattery faire they won their fathers heart ; 

Which after turned hym and mee to smart 

XX. But not content with this, hee asked mee likewise 

If I did not him loue and honour well. 

No cause (quoth I) there is I should your grace despise: 

For nature so doth binde and duty mee compell 

To loue you, as I ought my father, well 

Yet shortely I may chaimce, if Fortune will, 

To finde in heart to beare another more good wilL 

X2. Thus much I sayd of nuptiall loues that ment, 
Not minding once of hatred vile or ire, 
And partly taxing them, for which intent 
They set my fathers heart on wrathfull fire. 
" Shee neuer shall to any part aspire 

Of this my realme (quoth hee) amongst vou twayne: 

But shall without all dowry aie remame. 

13. Then to Maglaurus Prince, with Albany hee gaue 
My sister Gofterell, the eldest of vs all : 
And eke my sister Ragan to Hinniue to haue, 
And for her dowrv Camber and ComwalL 
These after him should haue his Kingdome all. 

Betweene them both hee gaue it franke and free, 

But nought at all hee gaue of dowry mee. 



At last it chaunst a Prince of Fraunce to heare my fame. 
My beauty braue, my wit was blaz'd abroad ech where. 
My noble vertues prais'd mee to my fathers blame. 
Who did for flattery mee lesse friendly fauour beare. 
Which when this worthy Prince (I say) did heare, 
Hee sent ambassage, lik'd mee more then life. 
And soone obtayned mee to bee his wife. 



25. Prince Aganippus reau'd mee of my woe. 

And that for vertues sake, of dowryes all the best : 
So I contented was to Fraunce my father fro 
For to depart, and hoapt t'enio^ some greater rest* 
Where lining well belou'd, my loyes encreast : 
Igate more fauour in that Prince his sight. 
Then euer Pdncesse of a Princely wight 



T48 KING LEAR 

id But wfoOe that I tbeae ioyes so wcfl veaaf^ in Fttaaue, 
My father Ltirr in Britayne waxt mnrddj old. 
Whereon his daughters more tbemsefaies aloft t'adnanoe 
Destr'd the Realroe to rule it as they w<4de. 
Their former loue and friendship waxed cold. 
Their husbands rebds voyde of reason quite 
Rose vp, refoeld, bereft his crowne and ri^it: 

vj, Cans'd him agree they might in puts eqnall 
Deuide the Reabne. and promist him a gard 
Of sixty Knights on him attending still at calL 
But in six monthes such was his 1^ to hard. 
That Gonerell of his retinue barde 

The halfe of them, shee and her husband reft. 
And scarce alow'd the other halfe they left. 

x8. Eke as in Alb&ny lay hee lamenting fates. 

When as my sister so sought all his vtter spoyle : 
The meaner vpstart courtiers thought themselues his mates» 
His daughter him disdayn'd and forced not his foyle. 
Then was hee fayne for succoure his to toyle 

With halfe his trayne to Cornwall, there to lie 
In greatest neede, his Ragans loue to try. 

19. So when hee came to Cornwall, shee with ioy 
Receiued him. and Prince Maglaurus did the like. 
There hee abode a yeare, and liu'd without anoy: 
But then they tooke all his retinue from him quite 
Saue onl^ ten, and shew*d him daily spite: 

Which he bewayl'd complayning durst not striue^ 
Though in disdayne they last alow'd but fiue. 

so. What more despite could deuelish beasts deuise, 

Then ioy their fathers woefull days to see? 

What vipers vile could so their King despise^ 

Or so vnlcinde, so curst, so cruell bee? 

From thence agavn hee went to Albany, 

Where they bereau'd his seruants all saue one^ 
Bad him content him selfe with that, or none. 

91. Eke at what time hee ask'd of them to haue his gard. 
To gard his noble mce where so hee went : 
They cal'd him dotmg foole, all his requests debard, 
Demaunding if with life hee were not well content : 
Then hee to late his rigour did repent 

Gaynst mee, my sisters* fawning loue that knew. 

Found flattery false, that seem'd so faire in vew. 

aa. To make it short, to Fraunce hee came at last to mee. 
And told mee how my sisters euell their father vsde. 
Then humbly I besought my noble King so fi-ee. 
That he would aide my father thus by his abusde : 
Who nought at all my humble best lefusde. 
But sent to euery coast of Fraunce for aide. 
Whereby King Liire might home bee well conueyde. 



APPENDIX A 149 

33. The souldiours gathered from ech quarter of the land 
Came at the length to know the noble Princes will : 
Who did commit them vnto captaynes eueiy band, 
And I likewise of loue and reuerent meere good will 
Desir'd my Lord, he would not take it ill 
If I departed for a space withall. 
To take a part, or ease my father's thrall. 

84. Hee granted my request: Thence wee ariued here. 
And of our Britaynes came to aide likewise his right 
Full many subiects, good and stout that were: 
By martiall feats, and force, by subiects sword and might, 
Tne British Kings were fayne to veeld our right : 

Which wonne, my father well this Realme did guide 
Three yeares in peace, and after that hee dyde. 

III. Spenser's * Faerie Queene '. — Book ii, canto x, 27-32. 

27. Next him king Leyr in happie peace long raynd, 
But had no issue male him to succeed, 
But three faire daughters, which were well uptraind 
In all that seemed l^tt for kingly seed ; 
Mongst whom his realme he equally decreed 
To have divided. Tho when feeble age 
Nigh to his utmost date he saw proceed. 
He cald his daughters, and with speeches sage 
Inquyrd, which of them most did love her parentage. 

a8. The eldest, Gonorill, gan to protest, 

That she much more than her owne life him lov'd ; 
And Regan greater love to him profest 
Then all the world, when ever it were proov'd; 
But Cordeill said she lov'd him as behoov'd : 
Whose simple answere, wanting colours fayre 
To paint it forth, him to displeasaunce moov'd, 
That in his crowne he counted her no hayre. 
But twixt the other twaine his kingdom whole did shayre. 

39. So wedded th'one to Maglan King of Scottes, 
And thother to the king of Cambria, 
And twixt them sha3n-d his realme by equall lottes; 
But without dowre the wise Cordelia 
Was sent to Aggannip of Celtica. 
Their aged syre, thus eased of his crowne, 
A private life led in Albania 
With Gonorill, long had in great renowne, 
That nought him griev'd to beene from rule deposed downe. 

30. But true it is that, when the oyle is spent. 

The light goes out, and weeke is throwne a^vay; 

So when he had resignd his regiment, 

His daughter gan despise his drouping day, 

And wearie wax of his continuall stay. 

Tho to his daughter Regan he repayrd, 

Who him at first well u^d every way; 

But when of his departure she despayrd. 
Her bountie she abated, and his cheare empayrd. 
(M906) M 



ISO KING LEAR 

31. The wretched man gan then avise too late^ 
That love is not where most it is profest; 
Too truely tryde in his extremest state. 
At last resolv'd likewise to prove the rest, 
He to Cordelia him selfe addrest, 
Who with entyre affection him receav'd. 
As for her syre and king her seemed best; 
And after all an army strong she leav'd, 
To war on those which him had of his realme bereav'd. 

3a. So to his crowne she him restor'd againe. 
In which he dyde, made ripe for death by eld, 
And after wild it should to her remaine : 
Who peacefully the same long time did weld. 
And ail mens harts in dew obedience held ; 
Till that her sisters children, woxen strong. 
Through proud ambition against her rebeld. 
And overcommen kept in prison long. 
Till weary of that wretched life her selfe she hong. 

IV. Sidney's < Arcadia'. — Book ii, ch. lo: ed. 1590, 
fol. 142-144. 

ThepiHfull state, and storie of the Paphlagonian vnkinde King, and 
his kind sonne, first related by the son, then by the blind father. 

It was in the kingdome of Galacia, the season being (as in the depth 
of winter) very cold, and as then sodainely growne to so extreame and 
foule a storme, that neuer any winter (I thinke) brought foorth a 
fowler child : so that the Princes were euen compelled by the haile, that 
the pride of the winde blew into their faces, to seeke some shrowding 
place within a certaine hollow rocke oflfering it vnto them, they made 
It their shield against the tempests furie. And so staying there, till the 
violence therof was passed, they heard the speach of a couple, who 
not perceiuing them (being hidde within that rude canapy) helde a 
straunge and pitifull disputation which made them steppe out; yet in 
such sort, as they might see vnseene. There they perceaued an aged 
man, and a young, scarcely come to the age of a man, both poorely 
arayed, extreamely weather-beaten; the olde man blinde, the young 
man leading him: and yet through all those miseries, in both these 
seemed to appeare a kind of noblenesse, not sutable to that affliction. 
But the first words they heard, were these of the old man. Well 
Leonatus (said he) since I cannot perswade thee to lead me to that 
which should end my griefe, & thy trouble, let me now entreat thee 
to leaue me: feare not, my miserie cannot be greater then it is, & 
nothing doth become me but miserie; feare not the danger of my 
blind steps, I cannot fall worse then I am. And doo not I pray thee, 
doo not obstinately continue to infect thee with my wretchednes. 
But flie, flie from this region, onely worthy of me. Deare father 
(answered he) doo not take away from me the onely remnant of my 
happinesse : while I haue power to doo you seruice, I am not wholly 
miserable. Ah my sonne (said he, and with that he groned, as if 
sorrow straue to breake his hearte) how euill fits it me to haue such a 
sonne, and how much doth thy kindnesse vpbraide my wickednesse? 
These dolefiill speeches, and some others to like purpose (well shewing 



APPENDIX A 151 

they had not bene borne to the fortune they were in,) moued the 
Princes to goe out vnto them, and aske the younger what they were? 
Sirs (answered he, with a good grace, and made the more agreable by 
a certaine noble Idnde of pitiousnes) I see well you are straungers, that 
know not our miserie so well here knowne, that no man dare know, but 
that we must be miserable. In deede our state is such, as though 
nothing is so needfuU vnto vs as pittie, yet nothing is more daungerous 
vnto vs, then to make our selues so knowne as may stirre pittie. But 
your presence promiseth, that cruelty shall not ouer-runne hate. And 
if it did, in truth our state is soncke below the degree of feare. 

This old man (whom I leade) was lately rightful! Prince of this 
countrie of Paphlagonia, by the hard-hearted vngratefulnes of a sonne 
of his, depriued, not onely of his kingdome (wherof no forraine forces 
were euer able to spoyle him) but of his sight, the riches which Nature 
graunts to the poorest creatures. Whereby, & by other his vnnaturall 
dealings, he hath bin driuen to such griefe, as euen now he would haue 
had me to haue led him to the toppe of this rocke, thence to cast him- 
selfe headlong to death : and so would haue made me (who receiued 
my life of him) to be the worker of his destruction. But noble Gentle- 
men (said he) if either of you haue a father, and feele what duetifull 
affection is engraffed in a sonnes hart, let me intreate you to conuey 
this afflicted F^nce to some place of rest & securitie. Amongst your 
worthie actes it shall be none of the least, that a King, of such might 
and fame, and so vniustly oppressed, is in any sort by you relieued. 

But before they could make him answere, his father began to 
speake. Ah my sonne (said he) how euill an Historian are you, that 
leaue out the chiefe knotte of all the discourse? my wickednes, my 
wickednes. And if thou doest it to spare my eares, (the onely sense 
nowe left me proper for knowledge) assure thy selfe thou dost mistake 
me. And I take witnesse of that Sunne which you see (with that he 
cast vp his blinde eyes, as if he would hunt for light,) and wish my 
selfe in worse case then I do wish my selfe, which is as euill as may be, 
if I speake vntruly ; that nothing is so welcome to my thoughts, as the 
publishing of my shame. Therefore know you Gentlemen (to whom 
from my harte I wish that it may not proue ominous foretoken ot 
misfortune to haue mette with such a miser as I am) that whatsoeuer 
my sonne (6 God, that trueth binds me to reproch him with the name 
of my sonne) hath said, is true. But besides those truthes, this also is 
true, that hauing had in lawful manage, of a mother fitte to beare 
royall children, this sonne (such one as partly you see, and better shall 
knowe by my shorte declaration) and so enioyed the expectations in the 
world of him, till he was growen to iustifie their expectations (so as I 
needed enuie no father for the chiefe comfort of mortalitie, to leaue 
an other ones-selfe after me) I was caried by a bastarde sonne of mine 
(if at least I be bounde to beleeue the words of that base woman my 
concubine, his mother) first to mislike, then to hate, lastly to destroy, 
to doo my best to destroy, this sonne (I thinke you thinke) vndeseruing 
destruction. What waies he vsed to bring me to it, if I should teU 
you, I should tediously trouble you with as much poysonous hypocrisie, 
desperate fraude, smoothe malice, hidden ambition, & smiling enuie, as 
in anie liuing person could be harbored. But I list it not, no remem- 
brance, (no, of naug:htines) delights me, but mine own ; & me thinks, 
the accusing his traines might in some manner excuse my fault, which 
certainly I loth to doo. But the conclusion is, that I gaue order to 



153 KING LEAR 

some seruants of mine» whom I thought as apte for such charities as 
my selfe, to leade him out into a forrest, & there to kill him. 

But those theeues (better natiu'ed to my sonne then my selfe) spared 
his life, letting him goe, to learne to line poorely: which he did, 
giuing himselfe to be a priuate souldier, in a countrie here by. But as 
he was redy to be greatly aduanced for some noble peeces of seruice 
which he did, he hearde newes of me: who (dronke in my affection to 
that vnlawfull and vnnaturall sonne of mine) suffered my self so to be 
gouemed by him, that all fauours and pimishments passed by him, all 
offices, and places of importance, distributed to his fauorites ; so that 
ere I was aware, I had left my self nothing but the name of a King: 
which he shortly wearie of too, with many indignities (if any thing may 
be called an indignity, which was laid vpon me) threw me out of my 
seat, and put out my des ; and then (proud in his tyrannie) let me goe, 
nether imprisoning, nor killing me: but rather delighting to make 
me feele my miserie ; miserie indeed, if euer there were any ; full of 
wretchednes, fuller of disgrace, and fullest of guiltines. And as he 
came to the crowne by so vniust meanes, as vniustlie he kept it, by 
force of stranger souldiers in Cittadels, the nestes of tyranny, Sc 
murderers of libertie ; disarming all his own coimtrimen, that no man 
durst shew himself a wel-willer of mine : to say the trueth (I think) few 
of them being so (considering my cruell foUie to my good sonne, and 
foolish kindnes to my vnkinde bastard :) but if there were any who fell 
to pitie of so great a fall, and had yet any sparkes of vnstained duety 
lefte in them towardes me, yet durst they not shewe it, scarcely with 
giuing me almes at their doores ; which yet was the onelie sustenance 
of my distressed life, no bodie daring to shewe so much charitie, as to 
lende me a hande to guide my darke steppes : Till this sonne of mine 
(God knowes, woorthie of a more vertuous, and more fortunate father) 
forgetting my abhominable wrongs, not recking daunger, & neglecting 
the present good way he was in doing himselfe good, came hether to 
doo this kind office you see him performe tOMrards me, to my vnspeak- 
able griefe ; not onely because his kindnes is a |;lasse euen to my blind 
eyes, of my naughtines, but that aboue all gnefes, it greeues me he 
should desperatly aduenture the losse of his soul-deseruing life for mine, 
that yet owe more to fortune for my deserts, as if he would cary mudde 
in a chest of christalL For well I know, he that now raigneth, how 
much soeuer (and with good reason) he despiseth me, of all men 
despised ; yet he will not let slippe any aduantage to make away him, 
whose iust title (ennobled by courage and goodnes) may one day shake 
the seate of a neuer secure tjrrannie. And for this cause I craued of 
him to leade me to the toppe of this rocke, indeede I must confesse, 
with meaning to free him from so serpentine a companion as I am. 
But he finding what I purposed, onely therein since he was borne, 
shewed himselfe disobedient vnto me. And now Gentlemen, you haue 
the true stone, which I pray you publish to the world, that my mis- 
chieuous proceedings may be the glorie of his filiall pietie, the onely 
reward now left for so great a merite. And if it may be, let me obtaine 
that of you, which my sonne denies me : for neuer was there more pity 
in sauing any, then in ending me; both because therein my agonies 
shall ende, and so shall you preserue this excellent young man, who els 
wilfully folowes his owne mine. 



APPENDIX B 



NOTE ON THE METRE OF KING LEAR^ 

I. Blank Verse. — ^The normal verse consists of ten sjrl- 
lables alternately stressed and unstressed, beginning with 
an unstressed syllable, without rhyme (hence called * blank 
verse'), and with a sense pause at the end of the line, e,g, — 

He raised' the house' with loud' and coVard cries' (ii. 4. 42). 
Return' to hei/ and firty men' dismiss'd'? (ii. 4. 204). 

As the line contains five feet each of two syllables, and 
each stressed on the second syllable, it is commonly called 
an * iambic pentameter*. 

II. Normal Variations.— A succession of such lines, how- 
ever, would be monotonous. Accordingly there are several 
variations in the rh)rthm. 

(i) Stress Inversion, — The normal order ot nan-stress and 
stress may be inverted. E.g; in the various feet : 
I ij Why' have | my sisters husbands, if they sav (i. i. 9a). 
3) But love, I dear love, j and our aged father s right (iv. 4. 38). 

1 3) Which I must act: | briefness | and fortune, work ! (ii. i. 18). 

1 4) 1^ me beseech your grace | not' to J do so (ii. 3. 134). 

1 5) Though I condemn not, yet, under f par'don (i. 4. 334). 

This inversion occurs commonly after a pause, and is 
thus found most frequently in the first, third, and fourth 
feet, ue. after the pauses at the beginning or centre of the 
line. It is seldom found in the second foot, and it is very 
rare in the fifth foot. When it occurs in the fifth foot the 
effect is generally unrhythmical. 

There are occasionally two inversions in the same line, 
e.g.— 

(i, 4| Broth'er | a word; descend: | broth'er, | I say I (ii. 1. 19). 

(i, 4) Bold' in I the quarrel's right, | roused' to | the encounter 



(ii. I. 54). 
e; rilab- ' 



(i, 3) None' does | offend, | none,' I | say, none; 1 11 able 'em 

(iv. 6. 149). 

Two inversions rarely come together, as in i. 4. 334. 

iThis note has been largely suggested by the "Outline of Shakespeare's 
Prosody" in Professor Herford's Richard J J, 

168 



154 KING LEAR 

(ii) Stress Variation, — ^The stresses may vary in degree; 
a weak or intermediate stress (') may be substituted for a 
strong stress. 

And dare, | upon* | the war | rant of ^ | my note (iiL 1. 18). 

The weak stress is particularly common in the fifth foot, 
eg", — 

Which else were shame, that then neces | sity* (i. 4. 202). 

There are, in fact, comparatively few lines with the normal 
five strong stresses. But there are certain limits to the 
variations; e.g; there are never more than two weak- 
stressed feet in a line, and two weak-stressed feet rarely 
come together (see, however, iii. ^. 15). Frequently the 
absence of a strong stress in a foot is made up for by 
(a) two weak stresses, as — 
Prith'ee | go* in* | thyself; seek thine own ease (iii. 4. 23); 

or (b) an additional stress in a neighbouring fopt, 

either before or after, as — 
Both' wer I come and* | protection. Take up thy master (iii. 6. 90). 
The les | ser is* | scarce' felt'. | Thou 'Idst shun a bear (iii. 4. 9). 

Two strong stresses are fairly common in the fifth foot, 
e.g-, — 

Although I the last | not least, | to whose | young' love'. 

(Cf. i. I. 139, iii. 2. 37, iv. 6. 164.) 

(iii) Addition of unstressed Syllables, — An unstressed 
syllable is frequently added. It may be introduced in any 
foot, which then corresponds to an anapaest instead of an 
iambus. 
(i\ I am al I most mad myself: I had a son (iiL 4. 154). 

(2) And when | I have stol'n | upon these sons-in-law (iv, 6. 167). 

(3) Thou 'Idst meet the bear | i' the mouth. | When the mind 's free 

(iii. 4. 11). 

(4) Whereto our health is bound; | we are not | ourselves (ii. 4. 103). 

(5) You sulphurous and thought-exec | uting fires (iii. 2. 4). 

Occasionally there are two such extra syllables in the same 

line, e.g, — 

(2, 4) When maj | esty stoops | to fol | ly. Reverse | thy doom (i. 1. 142). 

But see IV, (ii) (a) ifi). These additional syllables within 
the line occur commonly at the pause or * caesura*. 

Extra-metrical, — But this additional unstressed svllable 
is most commonly found at the end of the line, where it 
is extra-metrical. e,g, — 

I tax not you, you elements, with unkind i ness; 

I never gave you kingdom, call'd you child | ren (iiL a. 16^ 17). 



APPENDIX B 155 

It forms what is known as a double or feminine ending-. 
It is comparatively rare in Shakespeare's early plays, but 
it becomes more and more common, till in The Tempest 
it occurs once in every three lines. Of the 2238 lines of 
blank verse in King- Lear^ 567 have double endings.^ 

Two extra unstressed syllables are occasionally found at 
the end of a line, e,g, — 

My heart into my mouth: I love your maj | esty (i. i. 85). 
That he suspects none: on whose foolish hon | esty (i. 2. 165). 

But no sharp division can be made between a line such as 
this and a six-stressed line or Alexandrine (III, i); and it is 
sometimes best to consider the first of the two extra syl- 
lables as slurred (IV, (ii) (a) ifi) ). 

Examples of these extra syllables are common in lines 
containing proper names, e,g, — 

And you, our no less loving son of Al | bany (i. i. 35). 

But most lines containing proper names contain an extra 
stressed syllable, e,g, i. i. 38. Such lines are especially 
common in the English Histories. "They appear to be 
often on principle extra-metrical, and in any case comply 
very loosely with the metre." 

(iv) Omission of Unstressed Syllables. — On the other 
hand, an unstressed syllable is sometimes, though rarely, 
omitted, e,g, — 

— Ay I and lay | ing aut | umn*s du§t. | Good sjr (iv. 6. 178). 
As may | compact | it more. | — Get | you gone (L 4. 331). 

Such omissions generally occur after a marked pause, and 
hence (a) are found commonly, like stress inversion, in the 
first, third, and fourth feet; and {b) are frequently caused 
by a change of speaker, e*g, — 

EdfT, Hark, do | you hear | the sea? | 

Glou. — No' I truly, (iv. 6. 4.) 

(v) Pauses. — ^The normal verse has a sense pause at the 
und of the line, and a slighter pause ('caesura') within it. 
These are clearly marked in early blank verse (e.g. Gor- 
boduc)y where the pause within the line falls commonly 
after the second foot. The varied position of this pause, 
and the omission of the pause at the end of the line, con- 
stitute, in Shakespeare's later plays, his commonest depar- 
ture from the normal type. The 'lines in which the sense 
is, in Milton's words, *' variously drawn out from one verse 

2 Se« Flcay's ^kakespgare ManmU, p. 196. 



156 KING LEAR 

into another**, are called tun-on or unstopt lines; while the 
non-coincidence of the full sense with the end of the line 
forms what is known as enjamhement or overflow. Like 
the double or feminine ending, the 'unstopt' line was 
^adually used more and more by Shakespeare. In Lorv^s 
lLahour'*s Lost^ a typical early play, it occurs about once 
in every eighteen hnes, while in The Tempest^ Cymheline^ 
and the Wintet^s Tale it occurs on an average twice in 
every five. 

(vi) Light and Weak Endings, — ^The most pronounced 
form of the *!'jistopt' line is that with a li^t or weak 
ending. Such endings have the distinctive quality of being 
monosyllabic. Thus — 

Let it fall rather, though the fork invade 
The region of my heart (i. i. 137) 

is merely an instance of an ' unstopt* line. But there is a 
light ending in 

You have b^ot me, bred me, loved me: I 
Return those duties (i. i. 89), 
and in 

How sharper than a serpent's tooth it is 
To have a thankless child (i. 4. 279)). 

The difference between light and weah endings is that 
**the voice can to a small extent dwell "on the former; 
while the latter so ** precipitate the reader forward" that 
he is " forced to run them, in pronunciation no less than in 
sense, into the closest connection with the opening words 
of the succeeding line". Hence light endings consist of 
the auxiliaries, personal pronouns, &c., and weak endings 
of prepositions, conjunctions, &c. They are characteristic 
of Shakespeare's later plays; some of his earlier plays, e,g. 
the Comedy of Errors and the Two Gentlemen of Verona^ 
do not contain a single instance of them. Of the two, the 
light ending was the earlier in use, and it is always the 
commoner; but its relative importance gradually dimin- 
ished. Thus, in Macbeth^ for 21 light endings there are 
only 2 weak endings, but in the Winter^s Tale the numbers 
are respectively 57 and 43.* There does not appear to be 
any instance in King Lear of a weak ending; the following 
example is taken from Henry VI 11^ iii. 2. 173: — 

To the good of your most sacred person and 
The profit of the state. 

1 See Professor Ingram's paper in th« Trtm^actwt^ of Uu Nnt Skaktptrt 
4V»w(y, J874, pt. i^ - r 



APPENDIX B 157 

It should be noted that the closing of a line with a pre- 
position or other similar word is not alone sufficient to 
constitute a weak ending, eg", iv. 7. 16. Lines closing in 
so followed by (is {e,g', y. 3. 36) generally form li^^ 
endings. 

III. Less-usual Variations, (i) Addition oj Stressed 
Syllables, — Lines are occasionally found with six stressed 
syllables (ue, with an additional foot), e,g', — 

To speak and purpose not, since what I well intend (i. L 219). 

The pause in the six-stressed line (commonly called an 
Alexandrine) is found most frequently after the third foot. 
It occurs after the first in ii. 2. 140, and after the fourth 
in iv. 3. A2. It is generally very marked: hence it often 
occurs wnen there is a change of speaker, e.g-, — 

France, Could never plant in me. 

Cor, I yet beseech your majesty (L i. 217). 

(ii) Omission of Stressed Syllables, — Lines with only four 
stressed syllables are much rarer. The omission of the 
stress likewise may generally be accounted for by a marked 
pause. Hence it also occurs most commonly at a break 
m the dialogue, e.g, — 

Lear. Come. 

Edm. Come hither, captain; hark (v. 3. 26). 

Indeed a marked pause is the source of most metrical 
irrefifularities. 

(iii) Short or Broken Lines. — ^There are many short lines 
containing only one to four feet They occur most fre- 
quently at the beginning or end of a speech; but there are 
several examples of them in King- Lear in the middle of 
a speech, where they mark the completion or change of 
a subject or idea. These short lines, however, generally 
consist of questions, commands, exclamations, addresses, 
&c.; e,g, i. ^. 209, i. i. 269, iv. 5. 36, i. 4. 253. Some of 
the shorter lines may be regarded as extra-metrical. It 
will be noted that the short line is especially frequent in 
the more passionate speeches, e,g, i. 4. 268, li. 4. 280, and 
iv. 6. 1 1 2-1 30 (Globe edition). 

The broken speech ending is a characteristic of the 
later plays. • 

IV. Apparent Variations. — Many apparent irregularities 
are due to difference of pronunciation in Shakespeare's 
time. 



158 KING LEAR 

(i) Accentual, —The accent has changed in many words ; 
e,g, Shakespeare always has aspect (ii. 2. 100), imp&rtune 
(ill. 4. 149), and sepulchre — the verb— (ii. 4. 128). Retinue 
has the accent on the second syllable in i. 4. 191, and 
observants has it on the first in ii. 2. 97, — the only 
occasions in Shakespeare in which these words occur in 
verse. Consort^ in the sense of company, is accented on 
the last syllable (ii. i. 97). 

Certain words had not a fixed pronunciation. It is 
often only by the position of the word in the verse that we 
can decide on which syllable the accent falls. Thus the 
noun sepulchre has usually the accent on the first syllable, 
but in Richard II, i. 3. 19I6, it is pronounced, like the verb, 
with the accent on the second syllable. Similarly revdnue 
in i. I. 130 and ii. i. 100, but rdvenue in Richard II y 
i. 4. 46 ; Extreme (iv. 6. 26), but extrdmest (v. 3. 136). Note 
also sincere in ii. 2. 99. In general an adjective preceding* 
a noun of one syllable, or a noun accented on the first 
syllable, is not accented on the last. A striking eicample 
of this accentual change is found in Henry VIII , v. i. 132 — 
Might cdrrupt minds procure knaves as cornlft. 

The same change invariably takes place in such twcH 
syllabled adjectives as complete y exeunt, obscure, extreme, 
sincere, &c. (See Schmidt's Shakespeare Lexicon, vol. ii, 
Appendix.) The pronunciation which now survives is 
generally that which represents most closely the Latin 
quantity. The English accentuation of these Romance 
words tended in Shakespeare's time to make the stress 
fall on the first syllable; but the influence of Latin has 
frequently in Modem English restored the accent to its 
original place. 

(li) Syllabic, — (a) A vowel may be lost before a consonant 
at the beginning of a word: e.g. ^ scape, Against, ^borve, and^s 
for and his, H for it, 'j for his (i. 4. 99), for us (iii. 4. icx>), 
and for is, Cf. ihis^ for this is (iv. 6. 164). 

The same omission takes place within a word ('syncope'): 

(a) In the inflexion, as in the past tense and past parti- 
ciple, in the second person singular, as meanest (ii, 2. 102), 
in the possessive, as Pluebus* (ii. 2. 102), and in the superla- 
tive ('st for est). These shortened forms become more and 
more common in Shakespeare. 

{fi) In the second last syllable of words of three syllables 
accented on the first: e.g. courtesy^ (ii. 4. 176) and majesty 

1 The mark (.} under a vowel means that it is mute. 



APPENDIX B 159 

(i. I. 142), though ma-jes'ty (v. 3. 299). This contracted 
pronunciation has become fixed in such words as business, 
medicine » It is most commonly caused by a * vowel-like '; 
see below, c, 

(b) Two vowels coming together may coalesce, whether 
in the same word or adjacent words: e.g. influence 
(ii. 2. loi), radiant (ii. 2. loi), material (iv. 2. 35), 
violent (iv. 7. 28), immediacy (v. 3. 65), society (v. 3. 210), 
the expense (ii. i. 100), the untented (i. 4. 291). Royal and 
loyal are generally dissyllabic. 

There is no definite pronunciation of the terminations 
-kw*, -MWJ, -eous, &c. Thus we find conditi-on (iv. 7. 57) 

but benediction (iv. 7. 58), and gorge-ous (ii. 4. 265) but 

gorgeous (ii. 4. 266). The contracted pronunciation, that 
now in vogue, is the more common in Shakespeare's 
verse, though the dissyllabic pronunciation was recognized 
throughout the seventeenth century. (See Sweet's History 
of English Sounds, § 915.) 

{c) The liquids /, m, n, and r have the function of 
either a consonant or a vowel, hence called * vowel-likes '. 

(a) By the consonant (non-syllabic) function they may 
cause the loss of a syllable, either immediately before 



or after: e.g. amorous (i. i. 40), murderous (ii. i. 62), 

"' ] _ . " . 7i)» memories (iv. 7. 7), 

temperance (iv. 7. 24), victory (v. i. 41), countenance 



stubborn (ii. 2. 120), pelican (iii. 4. 71), memories (r 



iv. I. 63), prisoners (v. 3. 75), interest (v. 3. 85), privilege 
V. 3. 129), absolute (v. 3. 300). Also in words of four 
syllables: e.g. unfortunate (iv. 6. 68), desperately (v. 3. 292), 
^XiA particular {y, i. 30), though /affti:-«/-a/T (i. 4. 255). 

(i8) By the vowel (syllabic) function thej may form a 
new syllable: e.g. entrance, sometimes written enterance, 
through, sometimes written thorough, hel-mi (iv. 7. 36), but 
helm^iv, 2. 57), light-n-ing (iv. 7. 35), but light-ning{^\, 4. 161). 
The * vowel-like ' r frequently resolves a preceding long 
vowel or diphthong into two syllables : e,g, such words as 
hour, hire, fire are sometimes dissyllabic. 

(d) Sometimes a consonant, usually th or v, coming 
between two vowels is omitted, the vowels coalescing; 
in these cases the second vowel is followed by r or n. Thus 
even (adv.) is generally a monosyllable ; so also ever, never, 
over, often written e^er, ne*er, o'er. The ih is often omitted 
in whether (sometimes written where), rather, &c. 



i6o KING LEAR 

V. Rh3rme. — According to Mr. Fleay's calculation, there 
are seventy-four rh)rmea lines in King Lear, Shake- 
speare's use of rh3rme gradually diminished, but he retained 
tnroughout his career the couplet at the end of a scene. 
There are several instances of it in King Lear ^ e,g. L 2, iv. 7, 
V. I, and V. 3. Rhyme also marks me close of a speech 
and the exit of an actor, e,g, i. i. 248-255. Similarly in 
iv. 6. 258-259 it is used to mark a change of subject. 
It has also the closely connected purpose of giving point 
to the expression (e.g, i. i. 267, 268, i. a, 337, 338); and 
hence it readily lends itself, by reason of tnis epigrammatic 
force, to clinching the argument and making an effective 
ending. The only rhymed p€issage of any length occurs 
at the end of iii. 6. It illustrates the use of rhyme in 
passages of moralizing or of * plaintive emotion '. Rhyme 
IS not used in passages of passionate emotion — the tendency 
is rather to pass into prose, — nor for narrative, nor for 
the development of the action of the drama. 



GLOSSARY 



advise (ii. i. 27), reflect, con- 
sider: used reflexivdy. Similarly 
0^1;^^= consideration, judgment. 
O.Fr. aviser, avis, Late Lat. 
ad-visum. Originally "the way 
in which a matter is looked at, 
opinion, judgment " (Murray). 

aidant (iv. 4. 17), helpful. O.Fr. 
aidant, pres. part, oi aider. 

alaxum'd (il i. 53), aroused, 
called to arms. Alarum is an- 
oXh&Tiotmoialarm. O.Fr. a/amte, 
Itahan allarme = alVarmet ' To 
arms '. Thus originally an inter- 
jection, but used later as a name 
for the summons to arms. The 
derivative sense of 'fright', which 
is confined to the form alarm, is 
not found in Shakespeare. 

allow (il 4. 188), approve of, 
sanction. O.Fi:. aUmer, represent- 
ing both Lat allaudare, to praise, 
and allocare, to place, assign. 
Hence the two senses of ' approv- 
ing' and 'granting', which are so 
close as to blend. The former 
sense is more common in M.E. 
and E.E., the latter in Mod. £. 
Cf. allowaiioe(i. 4. 198), approval. 

an (i. 4. 97; ii. 3. 40. 94; ii. 4. 
61 ), if. Spelled and in the Quartos 
and First Folio, and generally in 
E.E. Its derivation is uncertain, 
but it is probably the same word 
as the co-ordinate. 

attaint (v. 3. 83), impeachment. 
O. Fr. ateinte, from p. p. oiateindre, 
'to attain', hence 'to strike, con- 
demn'. Lat. a/^*/!^<^<r, ' to touch 
upon *. It is a distmct word from 



161 



taint, 'stain', which comes from 
Fr. teindre, Lat. tingere or tin' 
guere. 

attend (ii. i. 12^; ii. 4. 35), 
await. O.Fr. atendre, L,. ad ■{• 
tendre. Primarily 'to stretch to*. 
Hence the meanings ' to direct the 
mind to', 'to look after', 'wait up- 
on ', and ' to wait for '. 

ayannt (iii. 6. 6a), begone! Fr. 
itvant, forward 1 LaPL ad ante, 

bandy (i. 4. 82; il 4. 172). The 
origin is obscure. Fr. bander, to 
strike a ball to and fro, as in tennis; 
perhaps from bande, a side. 

benison (i. i. 359; iv. 6. 306), 
blessing. M.E. beneysun, O.Fr. 
beneison, Lat. benedictionem; hence 
a doublet of 'benediction '. 

boot (iv. 6. 207; V. 3. 301). 
O.E. b(ft, advantage, good, profit; 
related in derivation to 'better', 
'best'. It occurs commonly in 
the phrase to boot, ' to the good ', 
'in addition', as in iv. 6. 207. 
The verb is represented in M.E. 
by bdten. 

caitiff(iii. 2. 50), wretch. Norm. 
Fr. caiti/, 'captive', 'miserable', 
Lat. captivum. Its Norman origin 
is shown by the retention, of the 
Latin c before a, French dialects 
generally represented this ch^ ch\ 
cf. castU and Fr. chdteau, caitiA 
BXi6.Fr. cfUtif. There was an early 
English variant chaitif, which came 
from a central Fr. form. The word 
is occasionally used in E^E. in the 
original sense ' captive '. 



1 62 



KING LEAR 



ean (iv. 4. 8). O.E. cunnan, 
••The O.Teut. sense was • to know, 
know how, be mentally or intel- 
lectually able ', whence ' to be kble 
generally, be physically able, have 
the power'" (Murray). 

champains (I i. 57), or cham- 
paigns, plains. M.E. champayne, 
O. Fr. champaigne, Lat. campania-. 
ultimately from Lat campus, a 
level field. The word was taken 
into English in the central French 
form cnampaizru, not in the 
Norman French form campaigne 
(Murray): GaD\jc?&\. caitiff . 

ei(i€lDi«S (ii. 4. 118), a pampered, 
affected woman: see note. M.E. 
cokeney, apparently cokeity 'of cocks ' 
+0'» 'egg'; thus literally 'cocks' 
eigz*, Theword was either achild's 
name for an egg, or a name for 
a small or misshapen egg. It was 
then applied as a humorous or 
derisive name for an unduly pam- 
pered child, a milksop. From this 
tt was applied to a townsman, as 
being effeminate in comparison 
with a countryman. Finally it has 
got its modem special reference to 
a native of London. (Miuray. ) 

comforting (iiL 5. 17), aiding, 
assisting; a common legal sense. 
O.Fr. cmforter, Lat. confortare, to 
strengthen, con intensive +/£?r/*j, 
strong. In legal phraseology it 
is commonly used along with the 
s)monymous word 'aiding', e.g, 
'aiding and comforting', 'giving 
aid and comfort*. 

commend (ii. 4. 27; ill. i. 19), 
deliver, commit Tlmjugh O.Fr. 
from Lat. commendare, com + 
mandare, to commit to one's care. 
The secondary sense of 'praising' 
arose from the idea that what is 
committed is worthy of acceptance. 
"The sense of 'committing' sur- 
vives in such phrases as 'com- 
mend to memory'; but it was 
much commoner m E.E than the 
sense of ' praising '. 

compeen (v. 3. 69), equals, is a 



compeer with. O.Tr, comper, com 
•\-per, a peer (in Modem French 
pair), Lat. parem, 

conceit (iv. 6. 42), imagination, 
illusion. Probably formed from 
conceive on the analogy of deceit, 
deceive, there being apparently no 
corresponding O.Fr. word. It 
never occurs in Shakespeare in the 
modem sense of 'high opinion of 
one's self. 

convey (i. 2. 94), carry out, do 
secretly. M.E conveien, O.Fr. 
conveier. Late Lat. conviare, con 
•{■via. Originally ' to accompany 
on the way *, ' to convoy' ; but used 
later of manimate things, = ' to 
transport, carry', and especially 
with a sense of secrecy. Cf. I 4. 
269. 

oosen'd (v. 3. 154). cheated, be- 
guiled. The derivation is uncer- 
tain. It has commonly been 
connected with Fr. cousiner, de- 
fined by Cotgrave. 161 1, as "to 
clayme kindred for advantage, or 
particular ends; as he who, to save 
charges in travelling, goes from 
house to house as costn to the 
honor of everyone ". But there is 
no idea of ' pretext of relationship ' 
in 'cozen' in E.E., in which the 
meaning is simply to ' cheat'. Cf. 
cosener, iv. 6. 144. 

oarions (i. 4. 33), complicated, 
intricate. O.Fr. curius, Lat. curi- 
osus, full of care, scmpulous. Ct 
cariosity, 'scmples, I 2. 4, 
•nicety of suspicion ', i. 4. 67, and 
• careml investigation ', i. i. 5. 

darkling (i. 4. 207), in the daik. 
M.E darkeling, dark + ling, an 
old adverbial formative. Ct. flat' 
ling oxflatlong, keadling or head- 
long, sidelong. 

deb08h'd(i. 4. 232), an early vari- 
ant of 'debauched '. Taken, about 
1600, from Fr. dibaucher, to draw 
away from duty; hence to lead 
astray, cormpt. "Obsolete in Eng- 
lish before the middle of the seven- 
teenth century; retained longer in 



GLOSSARY 



163 



Scotch; revived by Scott, and now 
trequent in literary English with 
somewhat vaguer sense than de- 
bauched" (Murray). Deboshed is 
the only form in Shakespeare. 

deer (iii. 4. 127). Not used in 
its modem special sense, but ap- 
plied to animals generally, usually 
to quadrupeds as distinct from 
bhxis and fishes. O.E. dior. Not 
connected with Gk. 0^, a wild 
beast. 

demand (iii. 3. 60; v. 3. 62), 
ask: the commoner meaning of 
the word in Shakespeare. Cf. the 
substantive, i. 5. 3. Fr. demander, 
LAt de+mandare. 

digest (i. I. 121), divide, dis- 
pose of. Lat. digerere, to carry 
asunder, divide, dis + gerere. 
Schmidt's explanation that it is 
used figuratively in the sense of 
• enjoy is untenable. 

earnest (i. 4. 91), earnest-money. 
The derivation is uncertain. Cf. 
O.Fr. erres, Modem Fr. arrhes, 
from Lat arrha. The Scottish 
form arUs is apparently from the 
same root. 

engraffed (i. i. 290), engrafted. 
Graff vfos the original form, and 
was in common use in E. E. The 
current form graft probably arose 
from the use oi graft (grajid) as 
the p. part, of the old form. O. Fr. 
^^. ^^ (Mod. Fr. grejfe), a 
slip of a tree, originally a pointed 
instmment Late Lat. graphium, 
a writing style. Gk. ypct^m, to 
write. Tlie Quartos have the form 
ingrafted, 

enormous (il 2. 163), abnor- 
mal, monstrous. Lat. enormis, 
e+ norma, pattern, ml«. This is 
the only instance of the word in 
Shakespeare's plays. The usual 
sense now — 'huge' — is derivative. 

entertain (iii. 6. 76), take into 
service: a common meaning in E.E. 
Cf. Two Gentlemen of Verona, ii. 
4, iio^ "entertain him for your 



servant". Fr. entretenir, Lat 
inter -^-tenere. 

eBperance(iv. i.4),hope. O.Fr. 
esperance, Late Lat. sperantia, 
sperare, to hope. 

essay (i. 2. 39), trial, test. O. Fr. 
essai or assai, Lat. exagium^ 
'weighing', hence 'examination', 
exigere, 'to weigh, consider', ex 
+ ago. The commoner form in 
Shakespeare is assay: essay occurs 
only here and in Sonnets, ex. 8. 
Cf. say. 

exhibition (i. 2. 20), allowance. 
O.Fr. exhibicion, Late Lat. exhi- 
bitionem, maintenance, exhibere^ 
to maintain, support, in legal 
sense. (Cf. exhibitio et tegumentum 
=food and raiment.) Its original 
meaning was 'maintenance, sup- 
port'; hence, as here, 'allowance, 
pension'. This sense survives 
only in its specialized use as a 
kind of scholarship given by an 
English college, &c. It has the 
sense of 'present' in Othello, iv. 
3. 75, "I would not do such a 
thing for a joint-ring . . . nor any 
petty exhibition". The meaning 
'display', &c., is comparatively 
late. 

favours (iii. 7. 39), features. 
M.'E. favour^ "S or. Ft. j^vor, Lat. 
favorem, kindliness. The mean- 
ing • face ', ' features *, arose from 
the common transition from the 
feeling or disposition to that which 
expresses it. The meaning ' face* 
is more common than the special- 
ized meaning ' features of the face', 
but cf. I Henry IV, iii. 2. 136, 
*' and stain my favours in a bloody 
mask ". Cf. the colloquial use of 
the verb in the sense of 'to re- 
semble '. 

feature (iv. 2. 63), outward form, 
appearance. O.Fr. failure, Lat. 
factura, from facere, to make. In 
E.E. it preserved its original gen- 
eral sense of ' make, form, shape'. 
It is not used in Shakespeare in 
the specialized modem sense of 
the parts of the face. 



i64 



KING LEAR 



fell (v. 3. 24), strictly a hide, 
skin with the hair on; but often 
used of the human skin, as in the 
phrase^M and fell, which means 
the whole body. O. E. fel, cognate 
with Lat. pellis, 

flaws (ii. 4. 282), shivers, splin- 
ters; akin to^/fe^ and ^/ft^ (stone). 
Cf. Jlaw'd^ broken, ciacked (v. 3. 
196). 

fond (I 2. 43; i. 4. 292; iv. 7. 
60), foolish. M.E. fanned, p.p. 
off on, primarily ' to lose savour', 
hence 'to be foolish', probably 
the source of M. E. fon, ' foolish ', 
•a fool', as well as of the later 
wordy%<«. From meaning 'foolish, 
silly', it came to mean 'foolishly 
tender', then 'affectionate', the 
change arising from the associa- 
tion of warm feeling with mental 
weakness. The inverse process 
has taken place in the M.E silly, 
.which comes ultimately from O.E. 
stl^l, 'happiness'. 

forfended (v. i. n), forbidden. 
M.E f Off en den, ward off, for+ 
fenden^ a shortened form of de- 
fenden, from Lat. defendere. As 
for is an English prefix — of simi- 
lar force to Sie Latin prefix de — 
forfenden is thus a hybrid. 

fret (i. 4. 276), wear, eat away. 
O.E. strong verb fretan, con- 
sume, from O.Teut. fra-\-etan, 
to eat The verb is wesuc in E. E , 
but a strong past. part, survives 
in fretten, the Quarto reading of 
Merchant of Venice, iv. 1. 77. 

frontelet (i. 4. 179). See note. 
O.F. frontelet, dim. of frontel, 
ultimately from Lat. frons, the 
forehead. 

fumiter (iv. 4. 3), fumitory. 
O.Yr.futneterre, Med. IjaX.fumus 
terrae, 'smoke of the earth'; so 
called because "it springeth . . . 
out of the earth in great quantity ". 
Hence " rau/fe fumiter". 

gallow(iii. 2. 39), terrify. An 
obsolete form of gaily. O.E. 



<^<r/icMzn, to alarm. Ci,gallicrow, 
used in Wessex for a ' scarecrow'. 

rbed (ii. 1. 55). frightened. 
geistan. Ine verb gasi is 
the same as the verb agast, of 
which the only part in use is the 
past part, agast, now erroneously 
spelled aghast. 

gennens (ill 2. 8), germs, the 
seeds of life. Lat. germen, QL 
Macbeth, iv. i. 59, "though the 
treasure Of nature's germens 
tumble all together ". 

good-years (v. 3. 24). An in- 
dennite name for an evil power or 
agency. The word was first used 
as a meaningless expletive, as in 
the phrase "What the good year! " 
But apparently from the equiva- 
lence of this phrase with "What 
the devil! plague! " &c., it came to 
be used in imprecations and curses 
for an undefined evil power. The 
phrase "What the good-year", 
which was probably adopted 
from the Dutch wot gotdjaar^ 
occurs in The Merry Wives, i. 4. 
129 (spelled ^«w/^>r). Much Ado, 
i. 3. 1, and 2 Henry IV, ii. 4. 64 
and 191. The present is the only 
instance in Shakespeare in which 
it is used in its secondary force. 
The word is commonly defined, 
since Sir Thomas Hanmer's edi- 
tion of Shakespeare, 1744, as the 
name of a disease. It is said to 
be a corruption of the Fr. goujeres, 
a hypothetical derivative of gouje^ 
a camp-follower. But this deriva- 
tion and definition are erroneous. 
(Bradley.) 

holp (iii. 7. 61). Of the strong 
inflexions of A^i5^, the normal M.E. 
past tense was halp', the pi was 
holpen, later holp or holpe, which 
c. 1500 was extended also to the 
sing., and continued in frequent 
use till the seventeenth century 
(Murray). 

hurrlcanoes (iii. 2. 2), water- 
spouts. Span, huracan. The 
modem form hurricane was estab- 



GLOSSARY 



I6S 



lisbed only in the latter half of 
the seventeenth century. It is not 
found in Shakespeare. The form 
kurricama occurs also in Trtnlus 
€Md Cressida, v. 2. 17a, where 
like^¥ise it has the sense of water- 
spout 

inheriting (it 2. 17), possess- 
ing. M.E. inheriting enheriten', 
O.Fr. en-heriter, Lat fureditare, 
to inherit Often used in E.E1. 
in the loose sense of 'come into 
possession of. Cf. the Biblical 
phrase, "shall inherit the earth". 

iaUMw'd (i. I. 76), interested, 
concerned. InUress (noun and 
verb) is the early form of interest^ 
and is common in E.E. From 
M.E. and An^lo-Fr. inUresse 
(subst), Lat tnteresse, to con- 
cern, be of importance. 

intrinaa (ii. 2. 69), intricate, 
involved. Perhaps an abbrevia- 
tion c^ intrinsiaite: see Antony 
and Cleopatra, v. 2. 307. Cf. 
reverbs, i. i. 147. | 

joBtietr (iii. 6. 21, ^). O.Fr. 
fusticier. Late Lat. justitiarius\ 
thus identical in derivation with 
•justiciar' or 'justiciary'. It is 
used by Shakespeare in the sense 
of 'justiciar' or 'administrator 
of justice ' ; but it lias often the 
less specialized meaning of 'one 
who maintains justice, upholds 
the right ', as in iv. 2. 79. In 
iii. 6. 21 the Folios and Quartos 
read justice', Theobald's emen- 
dation justicer is supported by 
line 54. 

Icnapiwl (ii. 4. U9), knocked, 
struck. Of onomatopoetic forma- 
tion, the original meaning being 
' to strike with a hard sharp sound . 

kna;ve (i. 1. 15; L 4- 42» 93). 
boy, servant M;£. knaue, O.E. 
cnafa, cnapa, a boy. Cf. Ger. 
knabe. From meaning a male 
child, it came to mean a boy em- 
ployed as a servant, in both of 
which senses it is used in King 
Lear. Shakespeare uses it also 

(M906) 



in its modem sense of 'lascal, 
villain'. 

liege (i. i. 28), sovereign. M.E. 
iigf, l^* ii^g^f O.Fr. lige, liege, 
O.H.G. ledic, free, unrestrained. 
Hence properly used, as in the 
title liege 'lord, of the feudal 
suzerain. Skeat quotes from Bar- 
bour's Bruce, "Bot and I lif in 
lege pouste"=but if I survive in 
free and undisputed sovereignty. 
But by supposed connection with 
Lat ligatus, ligare, to bind, the 
word was applied to the vassals of 
the liege-lord. Hence the modem 
use in the sense of citizens, as in 
the phrase * the safety of the lieges '. 

I2iainly(iv. 7. 6^), perfectly. C£ 
»M!m=' chief, principal'. O.Fr. 
fnaine, magne, great, Lat. magnus. 
Commonly in Shakespeare with 
the sense ' forcibly, mightily '. 

many (iii. 2. 36; iv. a. 68), an 
exclamation derived from the oath 
' by the Virgin Mary\ 

maagre (v. 3. 131), in spite of. 
O.Fr. maulgrey^oA, Fr. malgri), 
literally 'ill will'. Ultimately from 
Lat. malus, bad, and gratum, a 
pleasant thing. 

meiny (ii. 4. 34), household. 
M.E. meinee, tnainee, a household, 
O.Fr. maisnee, Low Lat. man' 
sionata, a household, Lat. mansio, 
a dwelling. The word is spelled 
many in Spenser, Faerie Queene, 
V. II. 3, 2. It is the source ol 
menial. 

mere (iv. i. ai), unalloyed, pure. 
O.Fr. mier, Lat. merus, unmixed, 
specially of wine. 

mess (i. I. no), dish oi food. 
O.Fr. mes, a dish, literally that 
which is placed on the table; Low 
Lat. missum, mittere, to place; 
Lat mittere, to send. Cf. Mod. 
Fr. mets. 

minikin (iii. 6. 42), dainty, 
pretty. Cf. Dutch minnekyn, a 
cupid, darling, a diminutive of 
mtnne, love, cognate with O.H.«G. 
minfta, love. AUied to minion 
and Fr. mtgnoH. 

N 



i66 



KING LEAR 



' (L I. 154), wrecdL 
Originally an 'tmbeUever', and 
perhaps used here in this sense. 
O.Fr. wuscreant, Lat. minus -\- ere- 
dentem. Qi. 'Recreant'. 

modefi (it 4. 24; i¥. 7. 5X mo- 
derate. Fr. modesU, Lat. modes- 
tus, moderate, measurable^ from 
modus, a measure. Shakespeare 
uses the word both in thb onginal 
sense, and in its derivative and 
current sense, 'decent' or 'diffi 
dent'. 

moie^ (I I. 6), part, portion: 
strictly a half. Ang^-Fr. moyU 
(Mod. Fr. moitU)y 2i half, Lat. 
medietatem, from medius, middle. 
Shakespeare uses it in both senses, 
'half' and 'part'. 

motley (I 4. 138), M.E. motu- 
lee, O.Fr. matUU, 'curdled'. 
Hence ' spotted, vari^ated '. 
Strictly an adjective, but i^ed by 
Shakespeare as a substantive, 
(i) as the dress of the Fool, as 
here; and (2) as the Fool himself, 
e.g. "And made myself a motley 
to the view ", Sonnets, ex. 2. 

naughty (iii. 4. 104; iii. 7> S^)* 
bad, wicked: as frequently in E.E. 
M.E. naught, O.E. nanvhit, na^ 
no +wAit, thing. Hence 'worth- 
less', 'good for nothing', 'vncked*. 
The sense ' mischievous ' is modem. 
C£ naugAt=wicked, il 4. 13a 

nicely (ii. 2. 98; v. 3. 144), 
punctiliously, with nicctjr. O.Fr. 
niee, simple, Lat. nescius, ignorant. 
The original meaning in English 
was ' foolish ', as in Chaucer; but 
in E.E. it had acquired the mean- 
ing of 'fastidious' as applied to 
persons, and 'petty, tnfling' as 
applied to things. " The remark- 
able changes in sense may have 
been due to confusion with E. 
nesh, which sometimes meant 
'delicate' as well as 'soft ' " (Skeat). 
Shakespeare does not use the wonl 
in the modem sense 'pleasant'. 

C3llladM (iv. 5. 25), glances. 
TheQuartos Ttadaliads, the Folios 



eUads (ist) and iHads (2nd, yrd, 
and 4thX " It cannot be decided 
whether Shakespeare wrote the 
Frendi word or some anglicized 
form of it." The word occurs 
also in Merry Wives, L 3. 68. 

offeod (L I. 298), hurt, harm. 
M.E offendem, Fr. ogemdre, Lat. 
offendere, to strike or dash against. 
Offitnd is strictly the opposite of 
' fend, this sense surviving in the 
'on the offensive", &c. 
le strong sense of 'hurt, harm' 
is comparativdy rare in Shake- 
speare, who uses the word chiefly 
in its modem si|pificati<xi: but 
d 2 Henry IV, vl 4. 126, "She 
b pistol-proof, sir; you shall hardly 
offend her." 

oar ere (ii 4. 283), before. The 
two words are identical in mean- 
ing, both being derived from the 
O.E. Sr, before. But it is prob- 
able that ere was considered a 
contraction for ever=/er. Shake- 
speare has both forms, or ere and 
or ever {Hamlet, L 2. 183). 

owes(i. 1. 196), possesses: owesfe 
(i. 4. 115). M.E. owen, awen, 
O.E agan, ak, 'possess'. The 
current sense of 'obligation ' arises 
from the idea of possessing what 
belongs to another. The word is 
used m this modem sense in iii. 
4.98. 

pelting (ii 3. 18), paltry—which 
has partly the same soiuce. The 
Northem word paltrie or peltrie, 
a. substantive meaning 'trash', was 
probably the source of E.E. paul' 
tring,peltering, ' petty ', and^elter, 
'a mean person'. By association 
with these, ^It, 'skin', acquired 
the suggestion of ' trash ', and from 
it appears to have been formed, 
during the sixteenth century, the 
word pelting^ on the analog of 
peltrie, feltering {Hedord). Note 
the moaempelting, adistmct word, 
in iii 4. 29. 

perdu (iv. 7. 35). Not from 
Fr. etrfant perdu, a soldier of a 



GLOSSARY 



167 



forlorn hope, but from sentinelle 
ferdue, a sentry placed in a very 
advanced and dangerous position. 
Thus " to rvatch — poor paxiul" 

per^(iL 4. 81), an exclamation. 
From ?r. par Duu, 

plaited (i. 1. 274). folded. M.E. 
plaiten, O.Fr. pleit, plet, a fold 
(Mod. Fr. pii)\ Lat plicatus, pli- 
care^ to fold. The Quartos read 
pleatedt the FoMos plighted, which 
are both doublets of plaited. The 
form plight, which is found in 
Spenser — e.g. " with many a folded 
plight", Faerie Queene, ii. 3. 26, ^ 
— comes from M.E. pliten, the^^ 
being an intrusion. It is qmte 
distinct from plight (i. i. 94), 
pledge, which comes from O.E. 
pliht, risk, danger, cognate with 
Ger. pjlicht, duty. 

potJifiT (iii. 2. 45), turmoil. 
From the same source as potter 
and poke\ not connected with 
'bother*. The Folios read pud- 
der, another form of the same 
word. 

power (iii i. 30; iv. 2. 16; iv. 
5. i; V. 1. 51), army; a common 
sense in E. E. M. E. pouer, O. Fr. 

Cmr, Late Lat. potere— posse, to 
able. Thus derivatively a sub- 
stantival use of the infinitive mood. 
Cf. Yr.pouvoir. 

preieiitly (i. 4- 137; "• 4- 33. 
113), immediately, at once: the 
usual sense in E.E. 

puisiant (v. 3. 216), strong, 
great F. puissant, IjowLaX. pos- 
sens, a pres. part, due to confusion 
between the correct form potens 
and the inf. posse, A doublet of 
potent, 

quit (ill. 7. 86), requite. M.E. 
qutten, O.Fr. quiter, Lat. ^uiet- 
are, to set at rest. Quit is de- 
rivatively a shorter form of quiet, 

recreant (L i. 160), coward. 
Strictly one who has changed his 
feuth. O.Fr. recreant, Lat. re-^ 
credentem. Cf. 'Miscreant'. 



reneffe (ii. s. 72), deny. M.E. 
reneye,\jaw\jaLX. renegare, whence 
'renegade', &c. The g is pro- 
nounced hard. The spelling of 
the Quartos is reneag. 

reyerbs (i. 1. 147), reverberates. 
Perhaps "a coined word, by 
contraction" (Skeat). Cf. intrinse, 
ii. 2. 69. 

■aw (ii. 2. 154), saying, proverb. 
M.E. saTue, saJSe, O.E. sagu, a 
saying, allied to secgan, to say. 
Cf. As You Like It, ii. 7. 156, 
" Full of wise saws". 

say (v. 3. 143), proof, taste: a 
common aphetic form of assay tx 
essay (q. v. ). Cf. the verbal use in 
Pericles, i. 1. 59, 60, "Of allsay'd 
yet, mayst thou prove prosperous. 
Of all say'd yet, I wish thee 
happiness! 

sennet (i. i., stage direction), a 
set of notes on a trumpet announc- 
ing the entry or exit of a pro- 
cession. The word does not 
appear in the text of Shakespeare. 
The forms 's)mnet*, 'sonnet', 
' cynet ', and 'signet ' also occur. 

several (i. i. 37), respective, as 
commonly m E.E. O.Fr. several^ 
Low Lat separate', a doublet of 
'separate*. 

^th (i. I. 174; ii. 4-236), since, 
M.E. sithen,. O.^, si^an, from 
sS ^am, after that A doublet of 
since, which is from M.E. sithens, 
ie. sithen-h the adverbial termina- 
tion -s or -^j, as in whiles. Note 
that sith usually has the sense of 
' as ', 'seeing that', though it has 
a temporal force in Hamlet, ii. 2. 12. 

■ises (il ^ 172), allowances. 
Short for asstge, a fixed quantity. 
M.E. assise, O.Fr. assis, 'an as- 
sembly of judges', 'a sitting', 'an 
impost ', ' quantity adjudged ' : ulti- 
mately frt)m Lat sedere, to sit. 
Hence the Cambridge term sixar, 
a scholar to whom certain 'allow- 
ances' are made. 

spills (iii. 2. 8), destroys. M.E. 
spitlen, O.E. spillan, spildan, to 



I/S8 



KING hEx^R 



(k^toy. Ct HamUt, vr» 5. oo, 
*' So full of artless jealousv is guilt, 
It spills itself in fearing to bespilt ". 

■MUed (Hi. 7. 60). starry, str- 
iate. Lat. sUllcchts, Stella, a star. 
Sd^dt and Craig take it to mean 
"fixed": cf.Sa*w«€^j,xxiv.i,"Mine 
eye hath played the painter and 
hath stell'd Thy Ijeauty's form", 
and Lucrece^ 1444, "To find a 
iiaoe where aU distress is stell'd". 

snggetrtton (li. i. 73). under- 
hand action: the usual meanmff 
of the word in Shakespeare. Cl 
suggest, to prompt, incite crimin- 
al^. M.£. suggesten, from p. 
part, of Lat. sttggerere, literally • to 
carry or lay under', s»d-hgerere. 
Su^iest and su^esHon are com- 
monly used in aciad sense in E.E. 

tell (ii. 4. 52), count M.E. 
tellen, O.E. tellan, to count, 
narrate. 

titliincr (iii- 4- 134), district. 
Originally a district containing 
ten families. O^E. ted^, a tenth. 

tr6Acb«ra (i. a. 115)* traitors. 
M.E. trecehour, trychor, O.Fr. 
trecher, to cheat; ultimatdy of 
Teutonic origin: cognate with 
trick. This is the only iBStaace 



of the word fai ^mkespeare, but 
it was common in £«K 

teowast (i. 4- "7)» bdievest 
M.E. trofwen, O.E. tredwian, to 
have trust in, tre&wa^ trust. 

tucket (ii. i, stage direction), a 
flourish on a trumpet or comet 
Cf. Henry V, iv. 2. 35, "Then 
let' the trumpets sound The tucket 
sonance and the note to mount". 
It toccata, from toccare, to touch. 

^annt-coorierB (iii. 2. s), fore- 
runners. Fr. avant-'coureur (see 
avaunt). Cf. the contraction in 
van, vanguard (Fr. avant*garde), 

villain (iii. 7. 77). servant 
O.Fr. vilein. Low Lat villanus, a 
fiann-servant; villa, a farmhouse. 
The word has here its original 
sense, but the current degraded 
sense 'scoundrel' is the more com- 
mon in Shakespeare (e.g. 1. 2. 149). 

whiles (ii. 3. 5; iv. 2. 58), strictly 
the genitive of while, time, used 
adverbially. Cf. twice, from twi-es. 
This old genitive survives inwhilst. 

wonhips (i. 4. 257), dignities, 
credit yi.K.worschip,vmt^scipet 
O.E. weoi^scipe, wyt^scipe, hon- 
our: a contraction of worthship, 
the M being lost in the fourteenth 
oentuxy. 



INDEX OF WORDS 



N.B. Other words wiU be found in the Glossary 



action-taking', il. 2. i6* 
additions, i. i. 129; v. 3. 68. 
admiration, i. 4. 2^. 
affected, i. i. i^. 
ancient of war, v. i. 32. 
approve, i. i. 178. 
argument, i. u 209* 
at point, i. 4. 316* 

ballow, iv. 6. 22a. 

battles, iii. 2. 23. 

Bedlam beggaps, ii, 3* 

bewray, ia^ t, 107; iii. 6. 109. 

blank, i. i. 152. 

bolds, V. I. 26. 

bond, i. I. 86. 

bourn, iii.^ 6* 25; fv. 6. 57. 

briefless, ii. u 18. 

carbonado, ii. 2. 33, 34. 
censure, iii. 5. »; v, 3. 3. 
century, iv. 4. 6* 
clodpole, i. 4. 46. 
clotpole, L 4. 46. 
Gk>ut, W, 6. 92. 
colour, ii. 2. 132. 
coinlbrtable, i. 4. 297. 
consort, ii. i. 97. 
converse, i. 4. 15. 
convey, i. 2. 94. 
costard, iv. 6. 222. 
court holy-water, iii. 2. »o. 
cowish, iv. 2. 12. 
coxcomb, i. 4.^ 92. 
curst, iL I. ^ 



169 



dear, i. 4. 263. 
defuse, i. 4w 2. 
depend, i. 4. 240. 
derogate, i. 4. 271. 
descent, v. 3. 137. 
diffidences, i. 2. 133. 
diseases, i. i. 168. 
disguise, i. 4. 2. 
disnatured, i. 4. 274. 
Dolphin, iii. 4. 94. 

ear-kissing, ii. i. 8. 
effects, i. i. 124. 
elf, ii. 3. 10. 
engine, i. 4. 259. 
epicurism, i. 4. 234. 
equalities, i. i. 5. 
event, the, i. 4. 340. 

faint, L 4. 66. 

fetches, ii. 4. 85. 

fire-new, v. 3. 132. 

first of difference, your, v. ^ 

288. 
flesh, ii. 2. 41. 
fleshment of, in the, 11. 2. 

117. 
Flibbertigibbet, in. 4. 106. 
foins, iv. 6. 226b 
foppery, i. 2. 1 10; i. 4. 158. 
foppish, i. 4. 158; t. 2. no. 
fordid, V. 3. 255. 
fork, the, i. i. 137. 
Frateretto, iii. 6. 6; iii. 4. io6b 
frontlet. :» 4. 179. 



lyo 



KING LEAR 



gad, upon the, i. 2. 21. 
generation, i. i. 110. 
generous, i. 2. 8. 
goest, i. 4. 116. 
graced, i. 4. 236. 
grossly, i. i. 285. 

handy-dandy, iv. 6. 137. 
Hecate, i. i. 103. 
home, iii. 3. 12. 
Hopdiance, iii. 6. 30. 
Hysterica passio, ii. 4. 54. 

immediacy, v. 3. 65. 
incense, u. 4. 303. 
ingenious, iv. 6. 260. 

Jug, i. 4. 215. 

kibes, I. 5. 9. 

Lady the brach, i. 4. 108. 

lag of, i. 2. 6. 

lances, v. 3. 50. 

like, i. I. 194; i. 1. 293; iv. 2. 

19. 
loathly, ii. i. 49. 

main, iii. i. 6. 
milk, i. I. 77. 
monsters it, i. i. 214. 
mother, ii. 4. 53. 

names my very deed of love, 

i. I. 64. 
nether, iv. 2. 79. 
notion, i. 4. 218. 
nuncle, i. 4. loi. 
nursery, i. i. 117. 

Obidicut, iv. i. 60. 
observants, ii. 2. 97. 
office, ii. 4. 102. 
old, iii. 4. no. 
on 's, i. 4. 99; i. 5. 19. 
on 't, i. 4. 145. 
out, i. I. 25. 
owes, i. I. 196. 
owe^t, i. 4. 115. 



packings, iii. i. 26. 

packs, V. 3. 18. 

pelican daughters, iii. 4. 71. 

pight, ii. I. 65. 

Pillicock, iii. 4. 72. 

poise, ii. 2. 120. 

practices, i. 2. 166; ii. i. 73, 

107; V. 3. 151. 
practised, iii. 2. 52; i. 2. 166. 
prefer, i. i. 268. 
pretence, i. 2. 81; i. 4. 68. 
proper, i. i. 12. 
property, i. i. 107. 
Pur! iii. 6. 45. 
put on, i. 4. 197. 

queasy, ii. i. 17. 
questrists, iii. 7. 16. 

regards, i. i. 233. 
resolve, ii. 4* 24. 
ripeness, v. 2. 11. 
roundest, i. 4. 53. 
rubb'd, ii. 2. 148. 

sallets, iii. 4. 122. 

sectary astronomical, a, i. 2. 

136. 
self, i. I. 62. 
set, i. 4. 118. 

set my rest, to, i. i. 116, 117. 
shealed, i. 4. 189. 
showest, i. 4. 113. 
sliver, iv. 2. 34. 
snuffs, iii. i. 26. 
some year, i. i, 13. 
soothe, iii. 4. 165. 
sop o' the moonshine, ii. 2. 28. 
spherical predominance, i. 2. 

US- 
square of sense, the most 

precious, i. i. 67. 
squiny, iv. 6. 121. 
subscribed, i. 2. 19. 
subscription, iii. 2. 18. 
succeed, i. 2. 129. 
success, V. 3. 194. 
sumpter, ii. 4. 213. 
super-serviceable, ii. 2. 16. 



INDEX OF WORDS 



171 



taking', ii. 4. i6a 
tender, i. 4. 200. 
terrible, i. 2. 27. 
thoug'ht-executing', iii. 2. 4* 
three-suited, ii. 2. 14. 
thwart, i. 4. 274. 
toad-spotted, v. 3. 138. 
Toilet, ii. 2. 59. 
Tom .0' Bedlams, iu 3. 
toward, ii. i. 10; iii. 3. 19. 
trdwest. Learn more than you, 

i. 4. 1 17. 
Turlygod, ii. 3. 20. 

unbolted, ii. 2. ^9. 
unpossessing', iu i. 67* 



unprized, i. i. 253. 
untented, i. 4. 291; i. i. 253. 
upon his party, ii. i. 26. 
upon respect, ii. 4. 23. 

validity, i. i. 74. 
virtue, v. 3. 103. 

wash'd eyes, with, i. i. 262. 

waterish, i. i. 2^2. 

web and the pm, the, iii. 4. 

107. 
where, i. 2. 76. 
wield the matter, i. i. 48. 

young bones, ii. 4. 159. 



GENERAL INDEX 



KthfAtf Shai£spearian Gratm- 

mar, L i. 204; L 2. 80; I. 4. 

24, m6, 225, 240; i. 5. 32; 

iL I. 75; iiL 1. 23, 24; iiL 2. 12. 
abstract used for concrete, 

iy. 7. 7. 
adjective, adverbial use of the, 

I. 4* 329; iv. 6. 3. 
adjective, substantival use of 

the, iL I. <9; iii. 7. 64. 
iEsop's Fables, allusion to, 

antecedent, omission of the, 

ii. I. 123. 
a#, omission of, i. i. 204. 
auxiliary, omission of the, iL i. 

75; iv. 2. 2. 

Bartholomew Fair, Ben Jon- 
son's, iii. 4. 9^ 

bastards' legal inability to in- 
herit, ii. I. 67. 

he in Early English, uses of, 

i. 5- 33- 
Bell-man of London, Dekker's, 

ii. 3- 
brains used in the singular, 

example of, i. 58. 

Capell, i. 4. 16, 17. 
Chapman, i. i. no. 
Coleridge, i. i. 100, loi, 166; 

i. 5* ?8; ii. i. 67, loi; ii. 4. 

261; iii. 4. 
comparative and superlative, 

double, i. i. 71. 
constructions, confusion of, iv. 

6.33,34. 



172 



cootractioos, eopboiiic, 1. 4. 99; 

L5. 19. 
Craig, W. J., L I. no; i. 2. 134; 

L4.252. 

Dedarution oj Popish Impos^ 
tures, Harsnet's, ti. ^ 53» 54* 
iiL 4. 51 ; iiL 4. 106; liL 6. 30. 

l>eiikjs/% BelUmuin of LondoHj 
M-3- 

-ed'm past participles, L i. 253; 
L 4* 291; iv. 6. 21; iv. 6. 
251. 

ellipsis, examines of, L i. 204; 
ii. 4. 41; V. I. 68. 

English Grammar, Ben Jon- 
son's, iL 2. 58. 

ethic dative, example of, L 2. 
90,91. 

Euphues, Lyly's, iL 2. 155, 156. 

Ex nihilo nihil fit, L i. 83. 

fish on Fridays, the Roman 
Catholic custom of eating, 
i. 4* 16, 17. 

Fumess, iii. 2. 27. 

Garganiua and Pantagruel, 

Rabelais, iii. 6. 6, f, 
gerundial infinitive, h. 4. 107. 
Guillim's Heraldry, ii. i. 67. 
Gunpowder Plot, allusion to 

the, i. 2. 96. 

Hanmer, ii. 2. 155, 156. 
Harsnet's Dedaration of 
Popish Impostures, ii. 4. 53, 



GENERAL INDEX 



173 



54; iii. 4. 5t; Hi. 4. 106$ Ui. 

6. 30. 
Harvey's (Gabriel), Pierces 

Superercgaiion, iu 2. 98. 
Hazfitt, i. I. 270; i. I. 138; 

iii* 4. 66; ili. 6. 61. 
hendiadys, examples of, i. 2. 

40; i. 2* 159; i. 4. 133. 
Heraldry y GuiUim's, ii. i. 67. 
herey substantival Use of, i. i. 

Hertord, Dr., i. 5. 24; iii. 4. iii. 
Horace's OdeSy iii. 6. 79. 

Johnson, i. i. 192; i. 2. 97; 

i. 4. 157-160; i. 5. 38; ii. 2. 16; 

ii. 2. 155, 156; IV. 6. II. 
Jonson's, Ben, English Gram- 

tnary ii. 2. 58; Bartholomew 

Fairy iii. 4. 94; Silent Womariy 

ii. 2. 14. 

Kellner, i. i. 266; ii. 2. 95; iii. 
2. 12; iii. 7. 64. 

Lipsbury pinfold, ii. 2. 8. 
liver, as the seat of courage, 

the, ii. 2. 15. 
Lyly's Euphuesy ii. 2. 155, 156. 

Malone, i. 4. 338; iiu 4. 51; 

iv. 3. 19. 
Middleton's Phoenixy ii. 2. 14. 

neuter possessive, forms of the, 
i. 4. 206; iv. 2. 32. 

OdeSy Horace's, iii. 6. 79. 
Oedipus Coloneusy Sophocles , 

iii. 2. 55. 
one superlative form applying 

to two superlatives, i. 4. 254. 
othery forms of the plural of, 

i. 4. 191. 

past participles, with active 
sense, i. i. 266; iv. 6. 10; 
suffix -ed in, i. i. 253; i. 4. 
291; iv. 6. 21; iv. 6. 251. 



Ph6eHiXi Middleton's, ii. 2. 

14. 
Pierces Superen^tiony Gabriel 

Harvey s, ii. 2. 28. 
preposition, omission of, L i. 

154; i-3* i» "• I. 39* "-a. 76; 
V. 3. 274. 
Proverbs of John Heywoody ii. 

puns, li. i. 1 19; U. 4. 7; ii. 4. 10; 

ii. 4- SI- 
Purchas PUgritneSy i. i. no. 

Rabelais, Gargantua andPan- 

tagruel, iii. 6. 6, 7. 
Reynolds, Sir Joshua, i. 4. 

206. 

Schmidt, Shakes^arian Lexi' 
cony ii. 2. 16; iii. 4* 160. 

seeming substance, that little, 
i. I. 192. 

Silent Womany Ben Jonson's, 
ii. 2. 14. 

singular verb, preceding a 

{>lural subject, 1. i. 182; fol- 
owing a pronoun with a 

plural antecedent, i. i. 184, 

185; following two nouns, 

ii. I. 113. 
some, ^th force of indefinite 

article, ii. 2. 89. 
Sophocles' Oedipus ColoneuSy 

ili. 2. 55- 
Steevens, i. 4. 165, 166; i. 4. 



215; »• 5- 38; V. 3. 72. 

at of 
the, V. 3. 74. 



$tomach the seat of anger, 



superlatives, one superlative 
form Yikili two, i. 4. 254. 

text, notes on the, i. i. 33-38, 
71, 76, 142; i. 2. 16, 101-106, 
i30-i37» i34» 150-1555 «• 3« 
20; i. 4. i32-i47> 314-325* 
335 ; ii. 2. i35-i39» 162-164; 
ii. 4. 45-52, 136-141; iii. I. 
7-15, 22-29, 30-42; iii. 2. 49, 
74--88; iii. 4. no; iii. 6. 12-14, 



174 



KING LEAR 



53, 96-100; ill. 7. 17, 42, 62, 
64; iv. 1. 6-9; iv. 2. 28, 31-50, 
68; iv. 3; iv. 3. 19; iv. 4. 4; 
iv. 6. 15, 146-151; iv. 6. 231; 
iv. 7. 85-^; v. 3. 160, 204- 
221, 323. 
transposition, form of, i. i. 88. 

Warburton, i. 4. 16, 17; i. 4. 
«45; iv. 3. 19. 



where^ substantival use of, i. 

255- 
Wnght, i. I. 273; i. 2. 96; ii. 
2. 16. 

ye for you f the use of, i. 2. 153; 

i. 4. 293; ii. 2.41. 
you were best, i. 4. 94. 

Z, the letter, ii. 2. 58. 



ADVERTISEMENTS. 



The Belles-Lettxes Series* 



/, English Literature to the Year iioo. 

BoownU (Klteber). Ready in 1907* 

Judith (Cook). 40 cents. 

JttllAitt (Stnnik). 40 cents. 

1DltetBAtae«flliaAonigAdBoanflfimiiSaxmClir»afclA(S«di!6e]d). 400* 

TlieGotpalot^t. Hattbew In W«8t Saxon. Text (Bright.) 400. 

" " *• St. Mark " " " (Bright.) 40c. 

« " ♦« St. Lake « « « (Bright.) 40c 

•• •* *• St. Jflitt *• " (Bright) 6fo. 

// Middle English Literature. 

The Owl and the Nightingale (Wells). 60 cento. 

l%e^ Pearl (Osgood). 60 cents. 

Sif ly StetMotIk Gantiuy. Lynca (Pad^tford). fo-oeats. 

IIL The English Drama. 

O&8C0igtte*ft Supposes and Jocasta (Cunliffe). 60 cents. 
Beaumont and Fletcher's Philaster and Maid's Tragedy (Thomdike). 
GJu^uaan's Russy D'.AAhois. Bothparu. (Boas.) 60 cents. 
Chapman's All Pools and The Gentleman Usher (Parrott). 6pc. 
Jensen's Alchemist and Eastward floe (Scheming). 60 cents. 
iPehster'fWhlttDtTUandJ>iteh«ssof.MaUi(SatBpson). 60c. 
Ooldsmith's (}ood Natur'd Man and She Stoops to Conquer (Dobson)* 1 
Lillo's The I<ondon Merchant and Fatal Curiosity (Ward). $oc. 
Rowe'v The Fair Penitent and Jane Shore (Hart). 60 cents 
Browning's Blot in the 'Scutcheon and three other dramas (Bates). 
Robertson's Society and Caste (Pemberton). 60 c^to. 
Swinbaine'i Mary Stuart (Payne). 60 cento. 

IV. Literary Criticism and Critical Theory. 
8helley*i Apology for Poetry and Browning's Bssay on Shelley. 

VL Nineteenth Century Foets. 

Robert Bums ((^eoige). 75 cento. 
William Wordsworth (George). 75 cento. 
Samuel Taylor Coleridge (George). 60 coUsb 
Alfred Tennyson (MacMechan), 60 cento. 
Robert Browning (Burton). 60 cento. 
Algernon Charles Swinburne (Payne). 60 cents. 



An Introduction to Robert Browning. 

By HIRAM CORSON, LL-D^ 

PtaleMor of SncUah litentan in Cornell UnWcnitj. 



THE purpose of this Toliime is to afford aid and goidance 
to the study of Robert Browning's Poetry. As this is the 
most complexly subjectiTe of all En^^ish poetry, it is, for this reason 
alone, the most difficult Tlie poet's favorite art form, the dramatic, 
or rather psychologic, monologue, which is quite original with him- 
self, presents certain structural difficulties, but difficulties which, 
with an increased £uniliarity, grow less and less. The ezpodtiott 
of its constitution and skillful management, presented in the Intro- 
duction, and the Arguments given to the several poems included 
in the volume, will, it is hoped, reduce, if not altogether remove^ 
the difficulties of this kind. In the same section of the Introduction 
certain peculiarities of the poet's diction are presented and illus- 
trated. 

It is believed that the notes to the poems will be found to cover 
all points and features of the texts which require explanation and 
elucidation. At any rate, no real difficulties have been wittingly 
passed by. 

The following Table of Contents will indicate the plan of the 
work: — 

I. Tht Spiritoal Ebb and Flow exhibited in Eng^h Poetry. 
II. The Idea of Personality and of Art as an intermediate agtacy of 
ity, as embodied in Browninf's Poetiy. 

III. Browning's Obscurity. 

IV. Browning's Verse. 
V. Arguments of tlM Poems. 

VI. Poems. Thirty-three representatiYe poema^ 
TIL List of criticisms on Browning's works. 

aoUL 848 pages. $1.0a 



D. C. HEATH & CO., Publishers 

BOSTON NEW YORK CHICAQO 



An Introduction to Shakespeare. 

By HIRAM C0R50N, LL.D., 

PkifaMor ol Ensliah Utentnra la Cornell Univenitj. 



THIS work indicates to the student lines of Shakespearean 
thought which will senre to introduoe him to the study of the 
Flays as plays. The general introductory chapter is followed by 
chapters on : The Shakespeare-Bacon Controversy, — The Authen- 
ticity of the First Folio,— The Chronology of the Plays,— Shake- 
speare's Verse, — The Latin and Anglo-Saxon Elements of Shake- 
speare's English. The larger portion of the book is devoted to 
commentaries and critical chapters upon Romeo and Juliet, King 
John, Much Ado about Nothing, Hamlet, Macbeth, and Antony 
and Qeopatra. These aim to present the points of view demanded 
for a proper appreciation of Shakespeare's general attitude toward 
things, and his resultant dramatic art, rather than the textual stu<fy 
of the plays. The book is also accompanied by examination quet- 
tions. 

This work is a scholarly and suggestive addition to Shakespeare 
criticism, especially suited to students' use, by reason of the author's 
long experience as a teacher, and also valuable to all lovers of 
Shakespeare, by reason of its independence of opinion, originality, 
and learning. 

Th* Natloo : Altogether, to excellent a volame of Shakespeare critkUm has 
Dot been put forth by an American scholar in many a day. Teachers and sti»> 
I both may profit by it as a model of how to learn in this particniar i 

COotti. 400 pagea. $1.00. 



D. C. HEATH & CO., PublUhers 

S08T0N NBW YORK CHICAGO 



The Literary Study 
of the BMe. . . . 

An account of the Leading Forms of literature 
represented in the Sacred Writings. Intended 
for English readers. 

By RICHARD Q. flOULTON, Ph.D., 

ProlMaor of litentnre in Kngliah in the UniTenity of Chicago. 

THIS book deals with the Bible as literature, without reference 
to theological or distinctiyely religious matters, or to the his- 
torical analysis which has come to be known as "the higher criti- 
cism.*' With a view to the general reader it endeavors to bring out 
fhe literary interest of Scripture, so often obscured by reading in 
rerses or short fragments. For the professed student of literature 
it has the further purpose of discussing methodically such literaiy 
forms as epic, l3rric, dramatic, etc., sa far as they appear in one o» 
the world's great literatures. It asstimes that the Englbh Bible is 
a supreme classic, the thorough study of which must form a part oi 
all liberal education. 

CONTENTS. iMTRODUcnoN : The Book qfyoo^ and the various kinds of lit< 
eraiy intetest represented by it. Book I : Literary classification applied 
to the Sacred Literature. Book II : Lyric Poetry of the Bible. Book III i 
Biblical History and Epic Book IV : The Philosophy of the Bible, or 
Wisdom Literature. Book V: Biblical Literature of Prophecy. Book VI < 
Biblical Literature of Rhetoric Appendices. — I : literary Index to th^ 
Bible. II : Tables of Literary Form. Ill : On the Structural Printmg f 
Scripture. IV : Use of the Digression in '* Wisdom." 

William P. Warren, PresuUni of Boston University {in Zion^s Herald )i 
The book is everywhere fresh and suggestive. The author has i^n immense capa- 
city for making a subject clear and lending to it a fascination by his new way ol 
presentii^ it Under his teaching, the English Bible becomes our supreme das 
■ic The torch he kindles sheds a flood of light over the whole book. 

545 pages. Large 12mo. doth. $2.00. 



D. C. HEATH & CO., Publishers 

BOSTON NBW YORK CHICAGO 









t- I 






«i¥^N «